Better Know a Soldier: Sigmund E. Wisner

Capt. Sigmund E. Wisner
79th Pa Officers Oval, Mathew Brady, 1865

Name: Sigmund E. Wisner
Birthplace: August 31, 1839 (Marietta, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania)
Occupation: Teacher, Postmaster, Grocer
Church/Religion: Methodist Episcopal
Political Beliefs: Republican
Term of Service: Private, 4/24-7/31/1861 with Company A, 10th PA Infantry; Sergeant, Sergeant Major, 1st Lieutenant, Captain, 9/23/1861-7/12/1865 with 79th Pennsylvania
Notable Events: Visit to Marietta in January 1864, Wounded in Battle of Atlanta
Post-war:  Teacher, Postmaster
Death: (>1910) Exact date and burial location unknown.

One of the soldiers in the 79th Pennsylvania to pick up his pen midway through the war and begin sending letters for publication in the hometown newspaper was Sigmund E. Wisner, then a sergeant in Company E.  Besides recounting the events around Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in the first half of 1863, Wisner also reflected on the war's greater meaning and historical context.  The front page of the May 16, 1863, edition of the Weekly Mariettian even featured a lengthy feature article, "The Present War," contributed by Wisner while in camp near Murfreesboro.  He began with the Pilgrims' landing at Plymouth and traced the nation's history to secession in 1860, and described the war's cause as follows:

The southern States have always cherished negro slavery as a favorite institution, with the mistaken idea that wealth forms the great dividing line in society. Thus the opulent became the aristocracy, and the poorer class are placed on a level with the slave. To make this distinction known to the world has been one of the chief aims of this rebellion. In the northern States, where the labor is performed by the mass, there is a dependent relation existing between the employer and the employed; in this way labor is elevated and becomes honorable. The northern people believing slavery to be socially and politically wrong, opposed its extension; this gradually produced a spirit of alienation between the north and south; and being constantly agitated in the halls of Congress by radicals of both sections led to a final seperation; on the part of the southern States, South Carolina was the first to pass the ``ordinance of secession,'' and declare herself out of the Union.

This is a useful quote for its articulation of the "median" Republican opinion of the war.  Slavery was wrong not so much as a violent system of racial ordering but as a production system that destroyed the dignity of labor and the opportunity of the laborer to claim its reward.  The was very much about economics, as slavery was very much a system of production.

At the time of the firing on Fort Sumter, Sigmund Wisner had just begun a twelve-week school session, which was advertised at a rate of $2 for primary students and $3 for second students.  He cut the term short to join the "Maytown Infantry" (Co. A, 10th Pa Infantry) on April 24, 1861 [Intel 5/7/1861; Pa Card File].  Upon his return after the regiment's three-months service, Wisner joined many other Lancaster County teachers in the "Normal Rifles" as fifth sergeant.  Better known as Company E, 79th Pennsylvania, the company was recruited mostly out of Mountville and Millersville, where a college to train teachers had been established a couple years earlier.

Wisner received regular promotions, reenlisting as a veteran in 1864 and attaining a promotion to captain of Company F by the end of 1864.  He was wounded in the attack on Atlanta, but finished the war in the field with the regiment.  Wisner continued writing to the Weekly Mariettian, and I count a total of nine letters between January 1863 and June 1864.  You can find them online at Pennsylvania Civil War Era Newspaper Collection.

In addition to serving for almost the entire duration of the war, Wisner stands out as one of Lancaster County's most active veterans.  He served on the committee in charge of erecting the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Lancaster, which was completed in 1874 and still stands today on Penn Square.  When the regiment met for its first reunion on October 8, 1877 (fifteen years after the Battle of Perryville), Wisner gave a history of the regiment.  Wisner's handwritten copy is now in the possession of the Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh.  Furthermore, Company E was unique in that it hosted its own three-day camping trips led by Thomas Hambleton for survivors in the 1890s and 1900s, and Wisner joined in at these reunions.

Google Books and digitized newspapers provide a good list of Wisner's postwar activities, including:

• Commander of the William Child GAR Post, 1886 
• Sunday School Teacher/Superintendent in Marietta and Lay Delegate to Methodist Episcopal Church conference, 1890
• Postmaster of Marietta in 1891
• Attendance at dedication ceremony for 79th PA monument at Chickamauga

The Battle of Sweeden's Cove, June 4, 1862

Map of Sweeden's Cove
Detail of Map by N. Michler, 1862 (Library of Congress)

The 79th Pennsylvania's very first engagement--on June 4, 1862, at Sweeden's Cove near Jasper, Tennessee--also happened to be perhaps its most tactically interesting and superbly executed mission of the entire war.  On May 28, the 79th Pennsylvania and other infantry, cavalry, and artillery under the command of General Negley left camp with twelve days' rations to march south again in the direction of Pulaski, Tennessee.  Instead of continuing south to Rogersville, as they had a couple weeks early, they veered east to march over mountainous roads to Fayetteville, Winchester, and ultimately the all-important city of Chattanooga approximately 90 miles east of Pulaski. Although I haven't seen it stated explicitly, I surmise the goal of this mission, which would have been planned by Negley and his superior General Mitchel, to feint towards Chattanooga to draw Confederate resources there and also encourage Unionist sentiment. 

The men of the Lancaster County Regiment enjoyed the first opportunity for real mountain marching, and soldier-correspondent Corp. Elias H. Witmer (bio) described the march on May 30 between Pulaski and Fayetteville:

The day is warm, the hills become steeper, the roads rougher, the poorly fed and worse cared for cavalry horses pant and fall to the ground, the artillery horses have become powerless, but the 79th is full of life--they laugh at their mounted fellow soldiers--the artillery call us the bull-dog regiment--the cavalry say we are the 1st Pennsylvania foot cavarly; we take it as a compliment, it gives us new life, and we push forward as fast as though the enemy, with 50,000 men, were on our heels.  We waded streams, crossed a small creek forty-one times, arrived at our place of bivouac, took a bathe, eat supper, made out bed, squatted, "good night," and were sound asleep. 

Confederate Col. John Adams
(Source)

Over the next few days, they continued marching east through a fertile valley and then through more mountains, reaching the peak of that section of the Cumberland Mountains on June 4.  Somewhere along the way, they discovered that Confederate cavalry, which Witmer plausibly estimates at 600-800, was encamped in the valley (Sweeden's Cove) that they were about to enter from the backdoor and descend.  The Confederate cavalry was a brigade under the command of Col. John Adams that had move out of Chattanooga and crossed the Tennessee River on May 29 and 30 under the orders of Gen. Beauregard. [OR Chap XXII, pp. 895-896]

After already having marched twenty miles that day, General Negley and acting brigade commander Col. Henry A. Hambright (bio) of the 79th Pennsylvania prepared to attack the rebels at the foot of the mountain.

Although it's not clear the specific roles of Hambright and Negley, they positioned two sections (four guns) of artillery just off the wood line and prepared their two regiments of cavalry out of sight.  Companies A, D, and F of the 79th Pennsylvania moved out of the woods and engaged the Confederates as skirmishers, soliciting the intended response of the cavalry being drawn up in a battle line. 

Satellite View of Sweeden's Cove near Jasper, Tennessee (Google Maps)
Union forces attacked from west to east (left to right on the map).

As soon as Adams' men were ready to charge, Hambright's artillery opened fire, initiating a panicked retreat by the Rebel horsemen.  One of the 79th Pennsylvania's skirmishers, Pvt. James Fields, wrote, "the moment [the Confederate cavalry] began the work [of attacking] we let drive and showered them in earnest from our cannon, which made them look two ways for Sunday." [7/5/1862 Weekly Mariettian]

It was then the Union cavalry's turn, and the 7th Pennsylvania Cavalry and 5th Kentucky Cavalry chased the routed Rebels for five miles.  Fields continued,

as the shot came thick and fast amongst them, they began to think about getting out of reach, and then our cavalry came rushing from the bushes and on them--and such getting away you never saw--they ran as if the devil was after them, dropping canteens, swords, sabres, guns, pistols, haversacks, overcoats... 

Sgt. William T. Clark (bio) recorded in his diary that the people in the nearby town of Jasper "told us the rebels didn't run, they flew."  The victory was decisive, and the pathway to continue the expedition to Chattanooga was now open.  

Besides captured ammunition and commissary wagons, the Confederates lost 20 killed, another 20 wounded, and 12 captured.  Clark mentioned on the next day that "Our cavalry found 20 bodies of the rebels that were killed yesterday," which must be those now buried in Bean-Roulston Cemetery in a mass grave.  Union losses were two killled and seven wounded, mostly among the 5th Kentucky, I believe.  The 79th Pennsylvania suffered no losses. 

From the June twenty-something (my notes were corrupted), 1862, Daily Evening Express, we have Corp. Elias Witmer's letter describing the engagement which contains Col. Hambright's report: (alternate link)

'Notoriety Cheaply Bought': The 79th Pa Becomes 'The Dare Devil Regiment'

 A Union Army Company (Mathew Brady, National Archives)
This is another company of the Army of the Ohio (Co. A, 9th Indiana), which was not connected to the incident described in this post.

January 17 marked the 150th anniversary of the first time soldiers from the 79th Pennsylvania were fired upon.  Unfortunately, it was by other Union soldiers who did not recognize the detachment of the 79th Pennsylvania led by Captain William G. Kendrick.  Fortunately, nobody was hurt and Kendrick's men barely even noticed the volley from afar.

The events leading up to this situation were part of a two-day adventure into the Kentucky countryside by Companies A, B, and F in pursuit of Confederate cavalry that was harassing the farthest advance of the Union picket line.  Kendrick's expedition included dramatically charging across an open field against a woodlot that turned out to be devoid of Rebels, saving over a hundred cords of wood which Confederates had tried to burn on their retreat, arresting a "noted secessionist", and interacting with civilians surprised to see Union troops for the first time.  

The three companies' actions led to a general alarm (spread by a frightened farmer) in McCook's whole division and sent the regiments of Camp Wood scurrying, some apparently in retreat.  Capt. Kendrick wrote a colorful letter of to his wife about the incident, and reported the Col. Hambright responded by double-quicking the rest of the regiment down the road to save his senior captain and three companies.  When everything was sorted out, Gen. Negley and his staff thought the whole incident was hilarious,"laughing at the devilish uproar we raised."  Judge Caines met Kendrick and told him "he was satisfied [Kendrick] was caught at last and Company A was a goner."  Kendrick concluded that "I think this will give me some notoriety cheaply bought as our Regiment has bin called the Dare Devil Regiment."  (WGK, 1/18/1862)

Kendrick's prediction turned out incorrect as a special correspondent of the Cincinnati Gazette at Munfordville reported on the incident as follows, casting a negative light on bravery of the Lancaster County Regiment: 

Four companies of the 79th Pennsylvania were sent out to make a reconnoisance to Horse Cave. Arriving at that point, they heard firing, which seemed to come from their rear, when they suddenly conceived the idea that it was the enemy, and that they were likely to be cut off. This was enough. It is believed the Pennsylvanians became panic stricken. At Horse Cave, where the railroad and turnpike diverge part took the turnpike and part the railroad, coming together again at Rowlett's station. Which party it was that despatched the courier is not clear--most likely the party that returned by the pike. Judge of the mutual surprise when they met at Rowlett's. It was supposed that the firing was on the left, and played the will-o'-the-wisp caper which so frightened the Pennsylvanians. In the hurried retreat of the Pennsylvanians they scattered the report that the enemy was approaching to attack us.

One of the Pennsylvania soldiers wrote a phrase-by-phrase retort to be published in the Louisville Journal, a copy of which appeared in Franklin County's Semi-Weekly Dispatch--available online here as part of the Valley of the Shadow Project.

Another source of information about the incident is Lieut. Lyman G. Bodie, originally an officer in Company A who had become the regiment's adjutant by this point.  Bodie wrote this letter published as a rare letter from the Lancaster County Regiment in the January 29, 1862, Examiner and Herald: (alternate link)

'Ho! For Old Kentucky!!': Rewind through Recruiting

From What a Boy Saw in the Army

Time constraints limit me from making a post out of every little news item related to the Lancaster County Regiment that I run across, so here's a list of items that I won't have time to discuss in detail.  I also recommend listening to Tim Orr's presentation, "Enlistment in the North and South During the Civil War," for a more general look at how Civil War regiments came into existence.  Compared to what happened elsewhere, the recruiting process was relatively tame in terms of partisan politics, presumably because Col. Hambright's stature as a military hero and proficient leader earned him bipartisan support. 

Here are a variety of references to news items from the Daily Evening Express, with the notations referring to the newspaper edition in which they appeared, ranging from September to November 1861.  

• Capt. Duchman's company, later Company B, is mustered in on September 5. (9/5)  Praise for Capt. Duchman. (9/10)
• Recruiting for Col. Hambright's regiment is "looking up."  (9/10)
• Battalion parade through streets of Lancaster with 400 men and visit by Brig. Gen. James S. Negley. (9/13)
• "Ranks Rapidly Filling Up" for Col. Hambright's Regiment. (9/17)
• Arrival of Capt. McBride's company, later Company D. (9/18)
• Sword presentation to Lieut. David Miles. (9/18)
• Arrival in Lancaster of Capt. McNalley's company, later Company C, 77th Pennsylvania. A scandal over the company's departure from Harrisburg ensued.  (9/20,25)
• Regiment is "nearly full." (9/25)
• Sword presentation to officers of Company F. (9/25)
• Capt. Wickersham's company filling up with many "school teachers and men of education." (9/25)
• Clothing distributed to Col. Hambright's regiment. (9/27)
• Officers of Col. Hambright's regiment entertained at N. Queen St. saloon and serenaded by Fencibles Band. (9/27)
• Report that Gov. Curtin assigned Hambright and his regiments to Negley's Brigade. (9/30)
• Dinner for volunteers in southern Lancaster City held by patriotic citizen Samuel Cormany. (10/1)
• Regimental parade on Center Square. (10/3)
• Controversy resulting from Capt. M. D. Wickersham unsuccessful recruiting visit to town of Christiana during which Wickersham's commitment to war was questioned based on his helping a stranded Southern female student at the Millersville State Normal School. (10/3,7,8)
• Fencibles Band concert to support Patriot Daughters of Lancaster. (10/4)
• Recruiting editorials: "More Union Men Wanted" and "Your Country still Calls," including announcement of company recruited by Frederick Pyfer and Benjamin Ober.  This company was recruited for Col. Hambright's regiment but later became Company K, 77th Pennsylvania. (10/10)
• Recruiting appeal: "Be in time, Young Men!" (10/17)
• Deserters from Col. Hambright's Regiment. (10/18,19)
• Capt. Foreman's grievances from a failed attempt to recruit a company for Col. Hambright's regiment. (10/20,22)
• Update on Pyfer and Ober's company. (10/22)
• Poem: "The Lancaster County Volunteers." (10/22,23,26,29;11/11)
• Presentation of sword to Capt. Wickersham. (10/30)
• Recruiting appeal: "More Men Wanted for Active Service in Kentucky." (11/2)

Advertisement for Capt. Pyfer's company, appearing in November 1861 editions of the Express.

Recruiting Update

"Recruiting in New York, August 1861" Harper's Weekly September 7, 1861

It's been a couple weeks since my last update on recruiting for Colonel Hambright's regiment, so let's go back a little to an update that appeared in the August 26, 1861, Daily Evening Express. (alternate link) For those unfamiliar with how Civil War armies were structured, a regiment was the basic unit of operation on the battlefield with an ideal strength of 1,000 men. It was comprised of ten companies with 100 men each. Companies were the basic unit of recruiting, and men from each company tended to be from the same hometown or from two or three villages.



And from the August 27, 1861, Daily Evening Express: (alternate link)



Here are some company-by-company notes about the regiment:

• As mentioned in the article, Captain Kendrick's company was filled largely with men from the Jackson Rifles.  More on Captain Kendrick in the future and his company, which became Company A.
• Capt. Seaver never went off to war, but his company of German-speaking men going off to fight under Lieut. Klein as Company F.  According to the article, both of the officers fought in the failed Revolution of 1848 under later Union General Franz Sigel.  Seeing the company described as the "German Sharpshooters," I wonder if they had any connection to popular German shooting clubs of the 1850s and 1860s that occasionally were mentioned in newspapers. 
• The company mentioned being recruited by Capt. Haines might have ended up going off to war with the 45th Pennsylvania led by Col. Thomas Welsh of Columbia. 
• Lieut. Michael Locher, operator of a billiard saloon on Centre Square, ended up leading Company H.
• Capt. Duchman's company later became Company B.
• The other companies mentioned did not end up joining the 79th Pennsylvania, and that's another story for another time, probably related to the article's last couple paragraphs about the chaotic process of organizing companies and assigning them to regiments.

So, as of August 27, we're looking at the origins of four of the companies of what would become the 79th Pennsylvania being accounted for.  More updates to come.

See also:
It's Official: Raise a Regiment