I somehow missed this when it was first posted - very cool!
I don’t know what went on at this meeting, but there has been a change in plans. Apparently the two colonels (Burrell of the 42nd and Sprague of the 51st) requested permission to swap orders. Col. Sprague had previously served under General Foster, and wished to do so again, and Col. Burrell preferred to serve under General Banks.
The original orders for North Carolina were destroyed, and new orders issued: The Forty-Second was to report to General Banks in New York. Banks, a former governor of Massachusetts, was in the process of assembling a force to take with him as he assumed command of the Department of the Gulf.
And so, the fate of these two regiments hinged on this unusual request and exchange of orders. The men of the Forty-Second are now striking camp and preparing to leave for New York.
It’s raining hard this afternoon, and the troops just left Readville on the Boston and Providence Railroad.
Well I’ll be. I pass the Readville stop twice every weekday…I won’t look at it the same again.
These posts are great btw.
The train carrying the Forty-Second Regiment arrived at the port of Groton, Connecticut late on November 21. The men were marched directly to the steamship Commodore, owned by Cornelius Vanderbilt and used as a military transport during the war.
Due to lingering rain and fog, the Commodore did not get underway until about 2 a.m. on Saturday, November 22.
At this point, the regiment consisted of nine field officers, five non-commissioned staff, and ten companies, each with three officers and between 79 and 96 enlisted men. A few men had been discharged for medical reasons during the encampment at Readville, and a few had deserted or had been discharged for other reasons. Private John Davis and his brother James were both in Company G, under Capt. Alfred Proctor and Lieutenants Albert Proctor and Thaddeus Newcomb. Twenty-eight of the 99 men and officers in Company G were recruits from the town of Melrose. (A couple of these were not Melrose residents, but had been recruited in that town for whatever reason.)
Unlike the somber train ride, the journey by steamship to New York was boisterous. The regiment’s sergeant-major recalled “singing, dancing, card playing, and cutting up pranks of various sorts” on board the ship. Many on board stayed up all night.
Each man was issued rations sufficient for three meals, but many of these inexperienced troops found themselves unable to budget their supply to last that long.
The Commodore arrived in New York this afternoon, putting to shore in Williamsburg, which would later become part of Brooklyn. Upon leaving the Commodore, the men, tired and hungry, formed ranks on South Second Street. (This appears to be present-day Wythe Avenue south of Grand Avenue-- many of the streets have been renamed.)
Local citizens provided the troops with coffee, bread, cheese, and other food. By 8:00 the men were on their way to their billet at the Union Race Course in East New York, a ten-mile march. (I am pretty sure this is the old Union Course in present day Woodhaven, Queens.) It did not take long for the urban scene to give way to a more rural setting, with total darkness and muddy roads prevailing. Into this darkness the nine hundred men of the Forty-Second marched, grumbling all the way.
On their first night in New York, the men of the Forty-Second Regiment found the Union Race Course full to overflowing with over four thousand troops, and no ground to spare for newcomers. They backtracked to a nearby stable belonging to noted horse trainer Hiram Woodruff. There, the men found whatever shelter they could in horse stalls and henhouses.
The second day, the troops were better supplied, and managed to put up tents containing improvised wood stoves for warmth. Here they remained for the rest of November.
Writing of the regiment’s experiences after the war, the sergeant-major reports that there were two difficulties during their time at this post. First, the rations were too few and barely edible, even by Army standards. Apparently, someone had contracted with the Army to provide cooked rations at a fixed price per ration, resulting in nausea-inducing meals that were intolerable to most of the troops. It was reported that when the commissary caught on fire, no one would lift a finger to help until it was learned that the post hospital was in the same building.
The second trouble involved officers taking too many leaves of absence, with or without permission, to visit New York or be off-post for other reasons. Many times, orders were received from headquarters with no officers present to receive them, and the non-commissioned officers had to fill in. Also, since officers had to sign off on any furloughs for enlisted men, it was nearly impossible for the men to get them-- this led to about forty cases a day of enlisted men imitating their officers by taking unauthorized leave. Whether or not John Davis or his brother took such “French leave,” I do not know.
On December 1, 1862, 150 years ago today, a shipment arrived at camp from Boston containing a complete set of band instruments. A 16-piece band was assembled from the rank and file.
Thank for the tread. you are doing a great job!
Keep it up
If I were, say, a history teacher for a smarter-than-average class of 12th graders, this would be required reading. Thank you.
ETA: The “real-time” effect is what makes this unique for me. You mentioned this – its makes the sitting-around-and-waiting, etc. feel real. Slightly analogous to when networks show the broadcasts from 9/11/2001 or 11/22/1963 “in real time,” but even better.
Around noon on December 2, Colonel Burrell received orders from General Banks, newly appointed commander of the Department of the Gulf, to proceed immediately to Brooklyn and board ships that would be waiting there. The men struck camp and prepared to move out. The regiment was marching westward into Brooklyn by three o’clock in the afternoon.
Before departing, however, Colonel Burrell had an extended argument with the contractor who had provided meals for the regiment during their stay. He refused to sign the receipt acknowledging the number of meals received, arguing that the whole enterprise was a fraud. In the end, however, with time ticking away and seeing the necessity of getting his men to Brooklyn by nightfall, Colonel Burrell agree to sun a receipt for one-third of the number of rations claimed.
malden-I too find this fascinating. Is this the “Glory” regiment? I’m from the South Shore, in the town I live in now, names of lost residents are on all street signs.
Just so you know, I did this once before. A guy from England did the story of his Grandfather in WWI this same way 2007/1917 to 2009/1919 he even ended up on the BBC. Subscribing
Thanks
Capt
For the past few hours, the regiment has been marching into Brooklyn. Near the end of the march, the men were greeted by local residents who came out to welcome them. Later, the sergeatnt-major of the regiment reported that
- Not that way. Or were they?
The end of the march followed Atlantic Avenue to a ferry landing in the East River. The men marched on the sidewalks to avoid the muddy road. Finally, they arrived at the ferry landing to find that there was only one transport ship available, and even that one was not ready to take on passengers. The men were put up for the night in the New York National Guard armory. Many of them were welcomed into the homes of local residents for dinner.
Meanwhile, across the river in New York, A Massachusetts colonel prepared a supply of coffee and food for the entire regiment at the foot of Canal Street, thinking that the Forty-Second would be leaving from there.
Thanks for the comments-- nice to know people are following the story.
Capt Kirk– do you have a link to the thread?
etv78– No, this isn’t the “Glory” regiment-- that was the fifty-fourth, which had not yet been formed at this point. There is a minor connection with this story: one of the lieutenants from Company G of the Forty-Second remained behind in Boston to pick up stragglers and medical cases from the regiment; when that work was done he got a discharge so he could join up with the recruitment effort for the new “Fifty-Fourth Massachusetts Colored Volunteers,” as it was called.
It was not an entirely quiet night in the Armory. Numerous attempts were made to evade the posted sentinels and get out to explore the city. The sergeant-major wrote later that by “merest accident” he discovered the regimental colors-- state and national flags and banners-- inside a “low groggery” on Atlantic Avenue. Colonel Burrell planned an investigation of the two color-sergeants responsible for the flags.
What the sergeant-major was doing inside the “low groggery” is not detailed in his account. 
The food mistakenly prepared for them across the river the night before arrived in Brooklyn on the morning of December 3. Three transport ships-- The Charles Osgood, the Shetucket, and the Saxon– were ready, but it took all day to round up stragglers. Around dusk, the three crowded ships hauled into the East River. It soon became clear that the ships were overcrowded, with a hundred men on each vessel sleeping on deck. The ships remained in the harbor overnight while Colonel Burrell inquired about obtaining a fourth transport.
Private Davis, his brother James, and the rest of Company G are on board the Saxon. The Manhattan that the company could see from the ship was a very different place in those days-- the tallest building in the city was Trinity Church, only 16 years old in 1862. There are no bridges across the east river, and much of Manhattan is rural. At this point, Private Davis cannot know that
A hundred and twelve years hence, he will have seven great-great-grandchildren, and all seven will be natives of Manhattan.
Oooh just found this - I love history and historical accounts, keep 'em coming. 
Found this thread through threadspotting. Awesome idea.
As long as you’re adding new content, there shouldn’t be a problem. Thread bumping is only an issue if it is contentless bumps just to keep on the main page of the forum. Ongoing discussion and posting of new material is fine.
Interesting observation: that there were five brothers available to be called to war. A lot more common in that day.
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Malden, I am subscribing. Just a suggestion for we non US people- could you please indicate which Army? It is probably obvious to Americans but to me I don’t know which side (and it is interesting to me).
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Should have been obvious from the line “On August 4, 1862, President Lincoln called for 300,000 additional troops to serve in suppressing the Rebellion.”
No worries.
I was thinking more upfront about which side but that isn’t important.
Also, the five bothers joining the conflict- I am aware of two English families who lost five sons each in the Great War. (Raised as an idea of what sort of thing families endured a century or more ago).
I am glad I am not brave or young enough to be a soldier. Looking forward to the next post Malden.
I’m a huge fan of Civil War history; this is a great thread. Thank you!
Wow, is that an authentic Civil-War-era emoticon? 
Well, the Colonel got his fourth ship. The *Quincy *was loaded up with three companies and put to sea last night–the first of the four ships to leave Brooklyn. Companies D, G, and I remained on board the Saxon, which was called the “Headquarters” transport because Col. Burrell and most of his staff were on board. This morning the men on the *Saxon *are cold and hungry, having subsisted on crackers and water for a day.
At 8 o’clock this morning, the *Saxon *put to sea. As they departed, the men gave a cheer to a lady standing on the walls of Fort Columbus (map), who waved an American flag as the ship passed. The sea is a little choppy today, and signs indicate some rough weather coming tonight. The Charles Osgood and the *Shetucket *remain in Brooklyn for now.
The captains of the four transports are under orders to proceed out to sea for 48 hours and then open their sealed orders.
malden, count me in as another reader also I’m from MA (at work in Framingham right now, as 150 years ago Private Davis heads out to sea) so I have a localvore’s interest as well.