Page:History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century Volume 2.djvu/277

 prisoners were taken to Corinth and from there sent to various prisons. About half of the men were paroled in May and sent to St. Louis; the remainder, or those who survived, were paroled in November. Their sufferings had been great, and many were so disabled that they never regained health or strength.

About one hundred and fifty members of the Twelfth, who were not in the Battle of Shiloh, escaped capture and were organized into the Union Brigade under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Coulter. The paroled men were exchanged in January, 1863, and returned to duty. Lieutenant-Colonel Coulter resigned in March and was succeeded by Major Edgington, and Captain J. H. Stibbs, of Company D, was promoted to major. The regiment served under Sherman in the Jackson campaign and participated in the siege and capture of Vicksburg. After the fall of Vicksburg the Twelfth marched with Sherman’s army against Johnston. In the latter part of July the regiment went into camp at Bear Creek, fifteen miles east of Vicksburg, where it remained until October. Here Lieutenant-Colonel Edgington resigned and Major Stibbs assumed command of the regiment, as Colonel Woods was in command of a brigade. Captain Van Duzee, of Company I, was promoted to major. About the middle of November the regiment joined the command of General Hurlbut and was soon after placed in charge of Chewalla, and remained there until the close of January, 1864. Its services here were arduous in guarding railroads against numerous bands of guerrillas. In January a large portion of the regiment reënlisted as veterans. In March, 1864, the veterans of the regiment visited their homes on furlough, returning toward the last of April. The regiment was sent to Memphis and was engaged in guarding lines of railroad. On the 13th, 14th and 15th of July it was engaged in fights with the enemy in the vicinity of Tupelo. On the 12th, while guarding a train, it was attacked by a Confederate brigade, and after a desperate conflict defeated