Sgt. Henry H. Taylor at Vicksburg-- Part 2

Art Fort Hill, the colors of the Forty-fifth remained until the line could be extended to another work farther to the right, which was also blown up.  Then, as the general saw that he could not hold the position and prevent its reconstruction without remaining in the crater, he withdrew the troops about seventy-five feet from it, and there remained his position until the surrender of Vicksburg.

This work was done under the orders of Generals Logan and McPherson.  The mining was done underbthe immediate guidance and supervision of General A. Hickenlooper, the corps engineer.

--Old Secesh

Sgt. Henry H. Taylor at Vicksburg-- Part 1

From "Deeds of Honor:  How America's  Heroes Won Medals of Honor" by Walter  F. Beyer, Oscar Frederick Keydel, 1901.

FIRST UNION FLAG IN VICKSBURG

When Fort Hill, one of the defenses  of Vicksburg, was undermined and blown up on the 25th of June, the 45th Illinois, of which Sergeant Henry H. Taylor was color-bearer, was the first regiment taken into the breach by General  M. D. Leggett, and fought there most gallantly until relieved.

According to the statement by General Leggett, he struggle was desperate.  The regimental colors were bravely supported  by Sergeant Taylor, and the first to be placed  in the rebel works during the siege.  

In the assault on the 22nd of May, a color bearer, further to the left of McClernand's front, had advanced far enough to plant his flag on or against the enemy's works.  This achievement, however,  was not regarded  as the placing of the Union's colors on the rebel works, as they were not held there.

--Old Secesh

Sgt. Henry H. Taylor, Medal of Honor Recipient

Last month I wrote about Sgt. Henry H. Taylor getting a Medal of Honor for action at Vicksburg, Mississippi.

Here is his Find-A-Grave information:

BIRTH:  4 July 1841,  Galena, Illinois

DEATH:  3 May 1909 (aged 67), Leavenworth, Kansas

BURIAL:  Greenwood Cemetery, Clay Center, Kansas

Civil War Medal of Honor recipient.  Born in Galena, Illinois, he became a  sergeant in Company C, 45th Illinois Infantry Regiment.  At Battle of Vicksburg, Mississippi,  on June 25, 1863, Sergeant Taylor was first to plant colors on the Confederate fortifications on Fort Hill.

For this heroic  action in the face of the enemy, he was awarded the Medal of Honor on September 1, 1893.

He gave the city of Clay Center the cemetery.

--Old Secesh

Some More About the Gettysburg Medals of Honor Recipients

Same surce as the last two.

**  Of the 64 Battle of Gettysburg recipients, only 20 received them during the war.

**  Corporal Joseph De Castro became the first Hispanic  Medal of Honor recipient.

**  Lt. Alonzo Cushing received his Medal of Honor 151 years after he was killed.

**  Corporal Thaddeus Smith of the 6th Pennsylvania Reserves is the youngest Gettysburg recipient at age 16.  He was also the last Gettysburg recipient to die in March 1933.

**  Only one of the recipients was killed in the battle, Lt. Alonzo Cushing.

**  One bugler (Charles Reed) and one musician (Richard Enderlin) earned the Medal of Honor at Gettysburg.

--Old Secesh

 

Preservation at Champion Hill, Mississippi

From the May 2023 American Battlefield Trust calendar.

The fierce clash at Champion Hill, Mississippi, was the largest, bloodiest and most significant battle of the Vicksburg Campaign of 1863.

On land owned by Sid and Matilda Champion, Grant's army drove the Confederates back to the relative safety of their fortifications at Vicksburg and set the stage for a game-changing siege.

Today, the Champion family still calls this historic spot home but has kindly worked with the Trust to ensure that their ancestral lands are preserved for generations to come.

--Old Secesh

This Month in the Civil War: Battles of Chancellorsville, Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House Begin, Lincoln Buried

From the 2023 May American Battlefield Trust calendar.

MAY 1, 1863

**  Battle of Chancellorsville, Virgina, begins.

MAY 4, 1865

**  Abraham Lincoln buried in Springfield, Illinois.

MAY 5, 1865

**  Battle of  the Wilderness, Virginia, begins.

MAY 8, 1864

**  Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, begins.

MAY 10, 1863

**  Stonewall Jackson dies of pneumonia at Guinea Station, Virginia.

MAY 10, 1865

*  Union troops capture a fleeing Jefferson Davis in Georgia.

--Old Secesh

Alonzo Cushing Was Last Gettysburg Medal of Honor Recipient in 2014

Same source as last post.

When Pickett's Charge finally reached the famed "copse of trees" on Cemetery Ridge, Union canister continued blowing holes in their ranks.  1st Lt. Alonzo Cushing commanded one of the Federal batteries there.

He received a severe abdomen wound and two of his guns were knocked out.  Even so, he refused to be taken off the field and kept his men firing at the advancing Confederates.  Later, he was hit in the mouth by a Minie ball bullet and was killed.

One hundred and fifty-one years after the battle, he would receive his Medal of Honor from President Obama.

Personally, I think that Alonzo Cushing's brother, Navy Lt. William Cushing should also receive one for his daring deeds, including sinking the feared Confederate ironclad CSS Albemarle with a small steam launch.

--Old Secesh