Iowa and the Rebellion
Lurton Denham Ingersoll
Philadelphia, Lippincott, 1866
CHAPTER XVI.
SEVENTEENTH INFANTRY.
ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT—HASTE TO REACH THE FRONT-GOES
BY WATER TO HAMBURG, TENNESSEE-SIEGE OF CORINTH—BATTLE OF
IUKA— BATTLE OF CORINTH-GENERAL ROSECRANS' CONGRATULATORY
ORDER-A HARD WORKING WINTER— YAZOO PASS EXPEDITION—THE
VICKSBURG CAMPAIGN—BATTLE OF JACKSON-CHAMPION'S HILLCOMBAT
AT FORT HILL
   The formation of the Seventeenth Infantry at first proceeded slowly. But the
exhilarating victory at Fort Donelson, in which the troops of Iowa bore so conspicuous a
part as to win the admiration of the nation, brought about renewed enthusiasm. During
the months of March and April, 1862, the regiment was organized, rendezvousing at
Keokuk. It was composed chiefly of men from the southern tier of counties, and the tier
adjoining, but several counties besides, even so far north as Buchanan, contributed to the
organization. On the 16th of April, the command, then numbering nine hundred and
thirty-five men, was mustered into the service of the United States.
   John W. Rankin was colonel. He had been a Judge of the District Court, a member of
the State Senate, a Quartermaster in the army. He had been a prominent lawyer and active
politician for several years before the war broke out. Just at this time he was ambitious of
military eclat, and, being of an ardent temperament, in no little haste to acquire it. The
regiment did not remain at its place of rendezvous any length of time, to acquire
discipline and to drill, as most other regiments of the State had done, but started at once
for the seat of war, leaving Keokuk on steamer for St. Louis on the 19th of the month. In
this feeling of anxiety to commence active operations immediately, Lieutenant-Colonel
David B. Hillis and Major Samuel A. Wise participated, as did, indeed, nearly the whole
regiment. Our western army was at the time confronting the rebel forces under
distinguished leaders in the vicinity of Corinth, Mississippi, and the 288 men were
anxious to engage in the combat which seemed to be impending. It was an honorable
feeling on the part of both officers and men, and as the siege of Corinth proceeded with a
sufficiency of caution and slowness, the want of drill and discipline was, perhaps, of no
great importance. The regiment remained at St. Louis a fortnight, receiving equipage,
field transportation, tents, etc., and then embarked for Hamburg, Tennessee, where it
arrived on the 7th of May, and immediately marched to join the grand army then laying
siege to Corinth.

   From the close of the campaign of Corinth till the commencement of
the wonderful operations by General Grant, which at last terminated in the victory of
Vicksburg, the labors and marching of the Seventeenth were constant, onerous, and
exhaustive.
   Early in November the division to which the regiment was attached, marched in a
westerly direction, and, passing through Grand Junction, encamped at Davis' Mills,
seventy-five miles distant from Corinth. On the 18th, the regiment marched to Moscow,
Tennessee, where it took charge of a forage train consisting of nearly two hundred
wagons, which it filled with supplies within the rebel lines, and brought safely into camp.
On the last day of the month the march southward was resumed, the army pressing close
upon the rebels, who retreated day by day, their rear guard constantly skirmishing with
our advance. The command went as far as the Yohnapatafa River, where it remained till
the 21st of December, performing unusually heal y picket duties. At this time, operations
in the rear of Vicksburg were abandoned; the army about-faced and marched in the
direction of Holly Springs, which had been captured, two days before, with immense
stores, by the rebels. This catastrophe—the result of treachery on the part of Colonel
Murphy, of a Wisconsin regiment—compelled General Grant to abandon the campaign
which he had marked out in his mind, and to retrace his steps. The march northward was
harassed by rebel cavalry and guerrillas, and the troops suffered no little from the want of
subsistence. On the day before Christmas our regiment reached Lumpkin's Mills, whence
on the 26th it accompanied the division to Memphis, in guard of a train of more than six
hundred wagons sent out to transport supplies to the well nigh famished army. On the
way to Memphis the column was almost constantly annoyed by bands of guerrillas; who
succeeded in capturing a number of men belonging to the Seventeenth who were paroled,
but whose paroles were not recognized. On the last day of the year the regiment started
for Holly Springs, but was relieved at Collierville, and assigned to duty at Bray's Station,
guarding a portion of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. Here it remained, doing
heavy duty, till assigned to the Seventeenth Army Corps, Major-General James B.
McPherson, when it went to Memphis—February 8th, 1863. Here the command remained
till the 2d of March, when it embarked for Grand Lake, Arkansas, reaching that place in
four days, but almost immediately returning to Helena, whence it accompanied General
Quinby's reenforcing expedition to Fort Pemberton, through the Yazoo Pass. The almost
demolished fleet, looking as though it had passed through a series of tornadoes, reached
the Mississippi on the 11th of April, on its return.
   On the 15th, the regiment again embarked with that expedition which was to be
crowned with success on the coming national anniversary. Throughout that wonderful
campaign, no more remarkable for the wisdom with which it vas planned than the heroic
fighting and endurance whereby it was executed, the. Seventeenth made for itself a
brilliant record. It bore its full share of the hard work in Louisiana. where roads had to be
made, bayous cleared out, bridges built, for the passage of the army. It participated in the
battle of Raymond: where General McPherson whipped the enemy on the 12th of Lay. It
was in the front brigade of General Crocker's Division which had the advance on the
14th, and fought as bravely as men ever fought at the battle of Jackson, losing there, as it
unflinchingly passed through an enfilading fire, twenty-five per cent. of it strength It
double-quicked three miles through the heat and dust, and discouraging reports of
stragglers and shirks, to engage in the battle of Champion Hills on the 16th, and by its
conduct of that bloody field won the personal praises of General Grant himself To join in
the fight the regiment marched from Jackson, a distance of twelve miles. It captured
nearly two hundred prisoners, a rebel battery and a stand of colors. With the Tenth
Missouri, old comrades, the Seventeenth and the Tenth Iowa decided the battle in our
favor. General Grant came up, and said,
   "Boys, you have done enough; I am going to let you rest." Accordingly, the semi-brigade,
together with McGinnis' brigade of the Thirteenth Corps, remained on the field whilst the
main army marched on, fought the battle of Big Black River, and invested Vicksburg.
The rest, however, was rather nominal than real. The regiment assisted in burying the
dead of both armies, and in caring for the wounded. Having remained here a short time, it
marched to the beleaguering army, reaching its position in the investing lines on the 20th
of May. During the assault of the 22d, the regiment was in the line of reserves, and
suffered but a slight loss. From this time until the capitulation on the 4th of July, its
duties were similar to the duties of other regiments in the grand army.
9
NIGHT COMBAT AT FORT HILL
   There were many exciting scenes and episodes to relieve the monotony of the vigilant
siege. Among these the explosion of Fort Hill, and the night combat which followed may
be noted. Among the many works erected by the skill of the engineer for the defense of
Vicksburg, was a strong fort on the Jackson road called Fort Hill. This work had been
mined by General John A. Logan, and being ready on the 25th of June to set fire to the
train, we sent to the division in which was the Seventeenth, for two regiments to assist in
assaulting and holding the work when the explosion should have taken place. The
Seventeenth was one of the regiments assigned to this duty. Early in the afternoon the
mine was exploded, and the center of the fort blown into the air with a deafening report.
The troops of General Logan rushed into the breach, and held it, but without being able to
take the work, or, perhaps, to do any great damage to the enemy. At eleven o'clock at
night the Seventeenth entered the breach, and held it for three hours, when it v as relieved
by the Thirty-first Illinois. The combat which the regiment maintained during these three
hours was most singular. The parapet had been very much broken and injured by the
explosion, but offered, nevertheless, considerable defense to the rebels and obstruction to
us. Half the regiment, from the top of this broken parapet, fired into the rebels inside, by
holding out their guns at arms length, and pointing the muzzles downwards. The pieces
were loaded by the other half of the regiment, and handed to the men above. In this
manner a constant fire was kept up during the entire combat. More than twenty thousand
rounds of ammunition were expended. But six or eight feet intervened between the
contending parties. The rebels threw six and ten-pound shells, as hand grenades, over the
parapet and among our men constantly. The glare of these bursting missiles relieved the
darkness of the night, but they failed entirely to intimidate our men, who with musketry
alone prevented the enemy from occupying the crater of the blown up work. In this
combat, the regiment lost three killed and thirty-three wounded.  The killed were so
charred and torn that their bodies could scarcely be identified, and many of the wounded
soon afterwards died.
   Captain Horner, of Company G was so severely wounded that it was months before he
recovered and Captain Ping, of Company E, was seriously disabled. Major Walden
commanded the regiment during this affair, and in his official report speaks in the highest
praise of the conduct of the officers and men. I should have before stated that Colonel
Hillis resigned in the latter part of May and Lieutenant-Colonel Wever was promoted to
Colonel, Major Archer, who had been in command of the Pioneer Corps since December,
to Lieutenant-Colonel, and Captain Walden of Company F. to Major.
   After the surrender of Vicksburg the regiment entered the city, and remained
encamped there till the 9th of September, when the division embarked for Helena, with
orders to reenforce General Steele operating against Little Rock, Arkansas. Little Rock
having been captured, the command went into camp at Helena, awaiting orders to rejoin
its corps, but soon afterwards proceeded to Memphis, and there, attached to General
Sherman's army, marched for Chattanooga on October 10th, to reenforce the Army of the
Cumberland.

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