“Albany, N. Y., June 18, 1890.“Capt. Walden Kelley, Osborn, Mo.:“Dear Comrade—Your interesting letter of the 9th was read with pleasure and in the next edition of ‘Regimental Losses’ I will insert on page 32:“‘Twenty-sixth Ohio, Wood’s division, number engaged 362, killed 52, percentage killed 14.’“This percentage, however, already appears, although in a somewhat different form, on page 36, the loss being one of the severest in the war.“I was pleased with the perfect analysis you made of the enrollment of your regiment, for it indicates that among the readers of Regimental Losses there are those who catch the idea involved in the question of enrollment, and who understand the argument I was trying to make. Had I known that the enrollment of the Twenty-sixth was capable of such an extensive boiling down, I would have gone over the names myself, and, as a result, would have assigned it a page among the ‘three hundred fighting regiments.’ As it is, I will try to put it there in the next edition. I will also insert on page 13:“‘Twenty-sixth Ohio, Newton’s division, Fourth corps, 1,161 enrolled, 122 killed, 10.5 per cent.’“A further study of the matter leads me to think that the Twenty-sixth must have lost 60 in killed and mortally wounded at Chickamauga but as this number includes some whose exact fate will never be known, I will have to leave the number, for the present, at 52, which is all that can be officially proved. If I remember rightly, however, this number includes two or three of the missing men in company E, whose names were mentioned in your letter.“The Twenty-sixth Ohio was a fighting regiment, and its grand record at Chickamauga has given it a foremost place in the heroic annals of the war. The figures for its loss on that field tell better than any high flown rhetoric of the desperate stand made by that gallant little battalion. Will attempt no compliments here, for I have no words which can add anything to the mute record of the figures which I have already recorded in connection with its name.“Perhaps your old comrades of the Twenty-sixth may be interested to know how the other regiments of their division fared on that hard fought field. I enclose a memorandum of thecasualtiesin General Wood’s division, and have added the figures for the number which each regiment carried into the fight. These figures indicate that the hottest fire along the line was concentrated on the position held by the Twenty-sixth Ohio. If any other regiment faced a hotter fire, it must have been from behind breastworks or some equivalent protection.“I think the losses in Wood’s division were still larger than these percentages indicate, for the number present seems to have been taken from the morning report, and so includes the non-combatants, together with others who, although borne on the morning report as present for duty, never carried a musket. I see that the Eighth Indiana battery reported 134 present, but I never saw a battery take that many men into action. And the Eighth Indiana had been knocking around a good deal before it reached Chickamauga.“Well, those were heavy losses, but they saved the day. I know there are many who call Chickamauga a Confederate victory, and the Johnnies fought hard enough to entitle them to one. But those two armies marched out for a prize. That prize was Chattanooga. ‘You’uns’ won it, and held it. ‘They’uns’ lost it.“I hope your regimental reunion will be a pleasant one, and that your reunions may be well attended for many years to come. With kind regards for all old comrades of the Army of the Cumberland (for my regiment served in the Army ofthe Cumberland part of the time), I remain“Yours in F., C. and L.,WILLIAM F. FOX.”
“Albany, N. Y., June 18, 1890.
“Capt. Walden Kelley, Osborn, Mo.:
“Dear Comrade—Your interesting letter of the 9th was read with pleasure and in the next edition of ‘Regimental Losses’ I will insert on page 32:
“‘Twenty-sixth Ohio, Wood’s division, number engaged 362, killed 52, percentage killed 14.’
“This percentage, however, already appears, although in a somewhat different form, on page 36, the loss being one of the severest in the war.
“I was pleased with the perfect analysis you made of the enrollment of your regiment, for it indicates that among the readers of Regimental Losses there are those who catch the idea involved in the question of enrollment, and who understand the argument I was trying to make. Had I known that the enrollment of the Twenty-sixth was capable of such an extensive boiling down, I would have gone over the names myself, and, as a result, would have assigned it a page among the ‘three hundred fighting regiments.’ As it is, I will try to put it there in the next edition. I will also insert on page 13:
“‘Twenty-sixth Ohio, Newton’s division, Fourth corps, 1,161 enrolled, 122 killed, 10.5 per cent.’
“A further study of the matter leads me to think that the Twenty-sixth must have lost 60 in killed and mortally wounded at Chickamauga but as this number includes some whose exact fate will never be known, I will have to leave the number, for the present, at 52, which is all that can be officially proved. If I remember rightly, however, this number includes two or three of the missing men in company E, whose names were mentioned in your letter.
“The Twenty-sixth Ohio was a fighting regiment, and its grand record at Chickamauga has given it a foremost place in the heroic annals of the war. The figures for its loss on that field tell better than any high flown rhetoric of the desperate stand made by that gallant little battalion. Will attempt no compliments here, for I have no words which can add anything to the mute record of the figures which I have already recorded in connection with its name.
“Perhaps your old comrades of the Twenty-sixth may be interested to know how the other regiments of their division fared on that hard fought field. I enclose a memorandum of thecasualtiesin General Wood’s division, and have added the figures for the number which each regiment carried into the fight. These figures indicate that the hottest fire along the line was concentrated on the position held by the Twenty-sixth Ohio. If any other regiment faced a hotter fire, it must have been from behind breastworks or some equivalent protection.
“I think the losses in Wood’s division were still larger than these percentages indicate, for the number present seems to have been taken from the morning report, and so includes the non-combatants, together with others who, although borne on the morning report as present for duty, never carried a musket. I see that the Eighth Indiana battery reported 134 present, but I never saw a battery take that many men into action. And the Eighth Indiana had been knocking around a good deal before it reached Chickamauga.
“Well, those were heavy losses, but they saved the day. I know there are many who call Chickamauga a Confederate victory, and the Johnnies fought hard enough to entitle them to one. But those two armies marched out for a prize. That prize was Chattanooga. ‘You’uns’ won it, and held it. ‘They’uns’ lost it.
“I hope your regimental reunion will be a pleasant one, and that your reunions may be well attended for many years to come. With kind regards for all old comrades of the Army of the Cumberland (for my regiment served in the Army ofthe Cumberland part of the time), I remain
“Yours in F., C. and L.,WILLIAM F. FOX.”
The author makes no claim to being a writer or in any way qualified to prepare a historic sketch of this character for publication. He has made this attempt as a duty and a labor of love. The space allotted does not permit of an extended and complete article, such as the company’s service would justify. Laboring daily, it is between days and with the limited records at his command, largely from memory, that it is produced. Having been present with the company in all its campaigns, battles and marches until its last battle was over, no one, living or dead, had better opportunities of knowing than he.
I have avoided individual praise or special mention. There is glory enough for all. Let it be the common inheritance of company E.
WALDEN KELLY.
Osborn, Missouri, September 1st, 1909.
Footnotes:
[1]While at Camp Chase the company was filled to the maximum (101).
[2]In the reorganizations of the army it changed to different divisions and corps and its number changed to correspond, regiments left and also other regiments joined, but at no time was the brigade organization broken up.
[3]1st Lieut. David McClellan of company G, was killed while in temporary command of company E. No officer belonging to the company being present.
[4]Our captain, 1st and 2nd Lieutenants had each been promoted from other companies of the regiment and transferred to company E.
[5]Official report of General Wagner, our brigade commander.
[6]Major General Sheridan was the first commander of the 2nd Division 4th A. C., and was followed in the order named by Generals Newton, Wagner and Elliott. It was commonly known in the army as “Sheridan’s old Division.”