Page:History of Richland County, Ohio.djvu/376

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��HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY.

��the enem}- suddenly rose, on the south bank of the river, and poured a murderous volley into the boat. The enemy's batteries also opened, and in a moment the boat became unmanageable b^' a shell. After a most gal- lant resistance for half an hour, the white flag was displayed. The boat, now totally unman- agealile, floated to the opposite shore from the enemy, and a large portion of the regiment jumped ashore and escaped over the levee. Others remained on the boat, prevented from ascending the plank by the rapid firing of the enem}^ About one hundred and sixty men fell into the hands of the rebels, beside the bodies of the killed.

After a terrible march, the wretched captives reached Camp Ford, on the 21st of May. In this miserable prison, the}- remained over a year, until the final cessation of hostilities.

Those who escaped formed themselves into a battalion of three companies, under Lieut. Col. Slocum, coming together for that purpose about one mile from the scene of disaster. A fatiguing march of twenty-three hours brought them to Alexandria. This remnant of the One Hundred and Twentieth was assigned to duty on the 12th of Ma}-, in a division commanded by Gen. Lawler.

The regiment having shared in the hardships and privations of the retreat of Banks' army, reached the Mississippi River on the 21st of May, and went into camp at JMorganza, La. On the 23d of August, it started with its division on an expedition into Eastern Louisiana, and, after dispersing a rebel force near Clinton, La., returned to Morganza.

On the 13th of September, the regiment left Morganza and proceeded up the Mississippi to the mouth of White River, thence up that river to St. Charles, Ark. On the 21st of October, Gen. Slack's brigade, to which the regiment now belonged, moved up to Duvall's Blufl*, Ark., and on the 27th returned to the mouth of White River. A second expedition was made

��to Duvall's BluflT, returning to the mouth of White River on the 24th of November.

On the 25th of November, an order was issued from headquarters of Nineteenth Army Corps, consolidating the One Hundred and Twentieth with the One Hundred and Four- teenth Ohio, and carried into eflect the next day. This ended the career of the One Hun- dred and Twentieth as a regimental organiza- tion. The consolidated regiment made several other expeditions of considerable importance before their muster-out in July, 1865.

When the One Hundred and Twentieth Regi- ment left Camp Mansfield, there still remained nearly four thousand men. Commenting on this fact, and giving a short resume of the men this count}- had already furnished, the Herald gives a summary of enlisted men sent from Richland County. It says :

" Mr. James Purdy has just sent the Gov- ernor a list of men that have enlisted from Richland County. From it we gather that in the first call for three months' troops we sent 247 men ; in the second, for the same service, 107; in the third, for three-years troops, 2,138, and in the fourth, drafted, 227 ; in all, 2,719 men."

The same paper, of November 1, says, "A hospital has been established in Camp Mans- field," and, " that Col. Sherman (Charles T.), states that there were rendezvoused in the camp 3,652 drafted men, 765 of whom have been dis- charged for disability; 986 procured substi- tutes ; 2,155 are now in camp, " he adds in another place.

Most of these drafted men remained in camp till the early part of December. They were assigned to dift'erent regiments as fast as they could be equipped and sent forward. The last of them left the 9th of that month. Portions of the Eighty-seventh Infantry and Tenth Cav- alry were sent to Cleveland, while the unas- signed men and officers were sent to Camp Chase at Columbus.

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