Battery E, 1st Illinois Light Artillery Regiment was an artillery battery that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It played a minor but noteworthy role in the Battle of Shiloh, and was mentioned in General William T. Sherman's after-action report on the battle. It also served at Vicksburg, Brice's Crossroads, Nashville and in several other engagements in the Western Theater of the war.
Recruitment Battery E was mustered into service at Camp Douglas, in Chicago, Illinois, on December 19, 1861. Its members came primarily from Cook County. On February 13, 1862, they moved to Cairo, where they were issued with horses, artillery and other necessary equipment.History of 1st Illinois Light Artillery, Co. E
Battle of Shiloh
Initial deployment
On March 27, 1862, Battery E travelled by boat to Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, arriving on the 30th.History of 1st Illinois Light Artillery, Co. E Joining Brig. General William T. Sherman's Fifth Division in Ulysses S. Grant's Army of the Tennessee (together with its sister unit, Battery "B"), the battery was not assigned to a specific brigade for the upcoming Battle of Shiloh, on April 6–7, 1862.Official Records, Series I, Volume X, Part 1, pages 100-108Official Records, Series I, Volume X, Part 1, pages 93-98
During this engagement, Battery E fielded four James Rifles, a rifled bronze artillery piece that proved popular during the early stages of the war, but later fell out of favor due to the excessive wear that combat service imposed upon rifled bronze cannon. According to one history of this engagement, Battery E was entirely inexperienced, having received its horses only ten days before the battle, and having drilled with them only three times.Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 88.
According to General Sherman's After-action report, he placed Battery E on a ridge to the left of Shiloh Church, covering a section of open ground between the 57th Ohio Infantry and the 53rd Ohio, near a house called the Rea Cabin.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of ShilohShiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 74-75. It was the 53rd Ohio's colonel, Jesse J. Appler, who had earlier tried to warn Sherman of large Confederate forces to his front, only to be told: "Take your damned regiment back to Ohio. There is no enemy nearer than Corinth!"Sherman's Folly At Shiloh The next morning would prove Sherman fatally wrong, as he and the rest of the Union Army were attacked during breakfast by a large Confederate force under General Albert Sidney Johnston.
During the coming battle, Battery E would be engaged in turn by elements of Patrick Cleburne's Second Brigade of Johnston's Third Corps, which was under the command of General William Hardee.The Battle of Shiloh, and the Organizations Engaged , by David W. Reed, pg. 13. It would also be engaged by elements of S.A.M. Wood's Third Brigade of the same corps, and later by elements of Patton Anderson's Second Brigade of the First Division of Braxton Bragg's Second Corps. Later, still, the battery would be engaged by two brigades from Leonidas Polk's First Corps, commanded by Bushrod Johnson and Robert M. Russell.The Battle of Shiloh, and the Organizations Engaged , by David W. Reed, pg. 13. Thus, Battery E would face units from all three of Johnston's main Army Corps during the course of the engagement.
The battle begins When the battle began, one section (two guns) of Battery E deployed just to the right of the 53rd, which had abandoned its camp and moved into the edge of a treeline facing an open field. The other section remained to the left of the 53rd, as originally deployed. Across this field, Confederates of the 6th Mississippi Infantry and the 23rd Tennessee advanced rapidly toward them.Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 74-75. Twelve Confederate guns from Shoup's Arkansas Battery opened up on the Federals,Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 87. and after firing two rounds in reply, the section that had originally moved to the right was ordered by Sherman's chief of artillery, Major Ezra Taylor, to rejoin the rest of Battery E, on high ground to the left of the 53rd on the other side of Rea Springs and the east fork of Shiloh Branch.Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 77.
Sherman, who was on the scene as this attack unfolded, ordered Appler to hold his portion of the line, telling him that he had "a good battery" (E Battery) to protect him. He also sent for three additional regiments to protect "Waterhouse's Battery" (Battery E) and the left flank of his line.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh Sherman later reported that Battery E and a companion battery further to the right opened up "promptly" on the advancing Confederates along with the assembled infantry. In Sherman's words: "the battle became general".Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh Battery E, together with Battery B of the 1st Illinois, fired into the Confederates advancing up the ridge toward Sherman's line, together with reinforcements crossing Rea Field ont to aid in the assault.Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 87.
The following is from Major Ezra Taylor's after-action report:
Although inflicting severe losses on the attacking Southerners,Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pg. 78. The 6th Mississippi lost 300 out of 425 men assigned to that regiment in this attack. Appler's regiment ultimately broke and ran after its colonel lost his nerve, leaving Battery E unprotected and facing imminent annihilation by the Confederates.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh Wood's Brigade obliqued to the right to avoid Battery E's fire; they were quickly replaced in turn by Cleburne's and Anderson's brigades,The Battle of Shiloh, and the Organizations Engaged , by David W. Reed, pg. 14. which suffered horrendous losses at the hands of three Illinois regiments, including the 43rd Illinois, which immediately advanced to assist the artillerists.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh They too ultimately broke under the ferocity of the Southern assault led now by elements from Cleburne, Anderson, Russell and Johnson's brigades,The Battle of Shiloh, and the Organizations Engaged , by David W. Reed, pg. 14. including the 13th Tennessee.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh
Retreat and regroup Viewing the imminent disintegration of his command, Sherman ordered the remnants of his division, including Battery E, to pull back and regroup on the Hamburg-Purdy Road, about 600 yards behind their current position.Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 87. However, the battery had barely made 100 yards before Major Taylor rode up and ordered it to unlimber and resume firing, insisting that every inch of ground had to be contested:
Waterhouse's attempt to comply with Taylor's order cost him three of his four guns, and resulted in the wounding of himself and his First Lieutenant.Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pp. 87.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh According to David Reed's history of the Battle, Battery E was engaged on its front by several different Southern regiments as the 13th Tennessee flanked it on the left side and attacked it from the rear, capturing its guns as the members beat a hasty retreat.The Battle of Shiloh, and the Organizations Engaged , by David W. Reed, pg. 14. Colonel (later General) Alfred Vaughan, commanding the 13th Tennessee, reported that when his regiment took possession of Battery E's guns they found "a dead Union officer [lying] near them, with a pointer dog that refused to allow the Confederates to approach the body."The Battle of Shiloh, and the Organizations Engaged , by David W. Reed, pg. 14.
The remainder of Sherman's division (including Battery E, minus its three lost guns) finally stabilized their lines in conjunction with General John A. McClernand's First Division. The following morning the Federals counterattacked and the Southern army was forced to retreat to Corinth, giving the exhausted Northerners a victory in the bloodiest battle America had seen up to that time.Four Things You May Not Know About the Battle of Shiloh from History.com
After the fight Sherman reported that during the battle, his division had captured seven guns to replace those lost to the enemy (three by Battery E, and four from other units) earlier in the engagement; Battery E was re-equipped with this captured ordinance.Sherman's Official Report of the Battle of Shiloh All told, the battery lost one man killed, sixteen wounded, and one missing during the two-day engagement.History of 1st Illinois Light Artillery, Co. E
Historians Mark Grimsley and Steven Woodsworth opine that Battery E had performed "magnificently" during the battle, making "an important contribution to prolonging Sherman's stand here." "This is all the more remarkable," they go on to say, "considering the complete lack of experience of Watherhouse's men."Shiloh, A Battlefield Guide, pg. 88. Lieutenant J.A. Fitch, who took command of the Battery after Captain Waterhouse was wounded, filed the following after-action report with Major Taylor:
A series of aerial photographs depicting the exact location of "Waterhouse's Battery" and other adjacent units may be seen at Hike Report: The Battle For Shiloh Church. Ground-level photos may be seen here.
Corinth to White Station Corinth and subsequent movements Following the Battle of Shiloh, Battery E moved with the rest of Sherman's division toward Corinth, Mississippi, which was occupied on May 29, 1862. Following this, they made their way down the Memphis and Charleston Railroad, skirmishing with Confederates along the way until they reached Memphis. Here they went into camp at Fort Pickering, where they spent their time drilling with their artillery pieces and horses, seeking to improve their efficiency.History of 1st Illinois Light Artillery, Co. E During this time, the regiment received new recruits, one of whom was Private James Bolton Rice, whose letters to his wife paint a vivid picture of the battery's activities from the time he joined it to his discharge in 1865.Letters of James Bolton Rice to his wife, Vol 1: 1860-62 Typewritten transcripts of privately held collection.
On November 26, Battery E accompanied Sherman's expedition to Oxford, Mississippi, part of a larger operation undertaken by Grant against Confederate General John C. Pemberton's forces entrenched along the Tallahatchie River near Holly Springs.Memoirs of General William T. Sherman, ch. 12.History of 1st Illinois Light Artillery, Co. E The Federal force made twelve miles per day on average until it encountered Confederate obstructions near College Hill, near Oxford on December 7. These included trees felled across the road, and "every bridge burned."Letters of James Bolton Rice to his wife, Vol 1: 1860-62 Letter of December 8, 1862.
Private Rice offers a description of a typical day in Battery E during this campaign:.Letters of James Bolton Rice to his wife, Vol 1: 1860-62 Letter of December 8, 1862. Some punctuation added by this author here, and in other Bolton quoteboxes as well.
Pemberton's army fell back to Grenada without a fight, so Battery E continued with its division to Corinth. It entered Holly Springs, Mississippi sometime prior to January 4, 1863, where Rice describes a scene of devastation left behind by Confederate General Earl van Dorn's raid on the town on December 20, 1862: "broken guns, dead horses, several unburned men, pieces of shells, lights out of every window, government wagons and ambulances half burnt up. The great depot all gone, a train of cars burned upon the track. The air filled [with] the smoke and smell of burning cotton. Large brick buildings blown to atoms, pillaged houses and sick men laying beside the streets."Letters of James Bolton Rice to his wife, Vol 2: 1863 Letter of January 4, 1863.
White Station