Nancy Roebuck
College Writing
December 8, 2015
Life as a Union Civil War Soldier
On June 2010 at Bedford Village, in Bedford Pennsylvania, our company, “The 105th Pennsylvania Company E” was called upon to battle as the confederates were preparing to gather. The men grabbed their rifles and equipment and fell into line. I was thirteen years old and was ordered to carry the flag of our country. As we joined our battalion, we were told that our company would be head of the battalion. Our company was at the center of the line with my flag being the head of the entire battalion. I was about fifteen yards in front of about 400 men and I was the center point for leading our battalion. I was thirteen years old leading an army into battle. More people should go through the experience of the men and women that kept their town together during times of war and today, in times of peace.
Hundreds of fires dotted the battlefield that night. It was in the evening of July 1st 1863 in some small town in Pennsylvania called Gettysburg. The first days fighting had the Confederates pushing us through the town into the hills beyond. The confederates held the town of Gettysburg. The Union soldiers were setting up breastworks, and making rock walls to prepare to defend the high ground on the next day.
The bugle call sounded at five o’clock A.M, no sleep this night, heart racing, and thinking of family. I grabbed my gear and prepared for battle. It was a humid, sticky morning and I was already sweating, and my breakfast consisted of hardtack and strong coffee, which I was grateful for. My body was weak but my mind was strong because I knew I had to defend my homeland. My father came out of the tent rubbing his eyes and getting the same meager breakfast that I’ve received. He has seemed to be moving slower than me, but still seemed up for the battle that lay ahead. We checked our equipment and made sure we were prepared for the upcoming struggle. The Captain called us all to attention and we were told that the Confederates were prepared to attack. I fought shoulder to shoulder with my dad and my fellow company men in battle before. But this battle was in our home state. Cannon fire was heard in the distance. Our company fell into line and was ready for battle. We started to march and joined up with the rest of the division. Our company was one of many, just trying to do our duty for God and our country. We were positioned in a place along the Emittsburg Road in a Peach Orchard. The sun was hot, the sound of battle was heard all around us and the trees were ripe with their fruit. We were praying to God while awaiting the Devil.
Lieutenant Jacob W. Greenawalt issued orders for members of the 105th the spread out across the Emmitsburg Road. The 105th Company E, 106 soldiers strong, from the town of West Newton, were in the center of the line. Cannon fire was falling all around them and bullets were stripping the peaches off of all the trees. In front of them were hardened soldiers from Mississippi, led by General William Barksdale. They were in for the fight of their life. Captain Markle reassured his men that they would see their small town of West Newton again. At that time a cannonball shattered a fence rail and wounded Captain Markle. The Confederates began their charge. Hundreds of men came marching across the field towards the 105th. Flags flying, the rebel yell screaming, the fate of America was at stake. Men loaded their rifles and held their ground, and prayed to God. Hell was about to begin. General Barksdale ordered his men forward and to fight for the cause. Through shot and shell, the rebels advanced towards the Union line. Men were evaporated into pink mist with cannon fires but kept advancing. The Confederates were almost in musket range.
I think I’ve came as close to experiencing the life as a Civil War soldier as I possibly could. I’ve slept on the ground, ate period-style food, fought in battles and went days without a bath. Although we just fire black powder a not live rounds, the experience is as close as you can get. Cannon fire erupting all around you, horses and men everywhere, the smoke of battle hanging over the field and the band playing music as we unleash death upon each other. I would do this for three to four days, living in the 1860’s and then come Sunday I would return to modern life. The real soldiers of the Civil War, on both sides, either had to die or wait until their service was up. I don’t know many fourteen-year olds that could say they have experienced what I have. I fit right in with all of the other men in my company. I didn’t want to do the civilian reenacting because I wanted to experience what it was like to relive history as best as I could. To be in battle, but yet it was a hobby. Our guns were real, all of our equipment was authentic, and the food we ate was all of that period. At the end of battle, we would sit around the campfire, ours was one of many in the camp that night. Civil war music would start to play around the campfires, all of the soldiers singing and enjoying another day of being alive.
My interest in the Civil War began back when I was around eight years old, and my father and my stepmother visited Gettysburg about eight or nine times a year. I would be crawling all over the rocks at Devils Den, walking the fields of Pickett’s Charge, climbing on the cannons on Culp’s Hills and walking by the creek known as “Bloody Run.” My dad knew the Battlefield like his own back yard, showing us things that the normal visitor of Gettysburg had no idea was even there. He would be telling me stories of what happened there back in 1863. Burial pits, soldier’s names etched in rocks where they fought, and bullets still stuck in trees. You would never know the wonder of this place and the sacrifice that has happened here to preserve the Union. Whenever I got a little bit older, I wanted to experience what my dad has for his hobby. At thirteen years of age, while most girls were still playing with Barbie dolls, I was firing a musket and drilling like a Civil War soldier. I looked like one of the men, tucking my hair up under my hat, wearing bulky clothes. You couldn’t even tell I was a girl. I got no special treatment; I had to do everything all of the other soldiers had to do. To be part of a Civil War group that was actually from my hometown of West Newton Pennsylvania, made it even more exciting. To know that I was walking in the footsteps of men from my hometown who fought in the Civil War, who lived on the same streets that I grew up on, fished in the same river that I fished in with my dad, walked the same downtown streets that they walked, and I was experiencing the effect of this great struggle that they experienced. While most girls were spending their weekends with friends at the mall, I was sleeping in a cow field in a tent with my dad and among my fellow company men. Smelling the smells of battle, of the fire, and of sulfur of the gunfire that was spent during the days of battle. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride for doing what I was doing. Not just being with my dad but to try to experience history first hand. I have carried the flag in front of hundreds of soldiers who followed me into battle, I fought shoulder to shoulder with the men of my company firing my rifle on the enemy, and also have helped take the wounded off of the battlefield. In my years of reenacting, I have met so many different people that enjoyed the same hobby as my dad did. During the week they were construction workers, Veterinarians, restaurant workers, as well as any profession that you can think of. But during the weekend, they were either Johnny Reb or Billy Yank. They took their hobby serious; we stayed in character the entire weekend. Nothing of modern times was permitted in camp. At first I thought this was going to be hell on Earth, but it ended up being one of the best experiences of my childhood. Being with my dad, doing what he loved to do and actually having fun. All I wanted to do was to experience what our company went through at Gettysburg. That time was near.
July 2nd 1863 approximately, 2:45 P.M, through shot and shell, General Barksdales’ men from Mississippi, advanced further towards the Peach Orchard. The command was given to fire by battalion. Hundreds of rifles were aimed at the enemy. The order was given to fire and men dropped like flies. The order was given to reload as the rebels kept advancing. Many of our men went down; when men fell, someone was put in their spot. The enemy kept coming, the feared rebel yell got stronger. The trees in the peach orchard were cut down like grass under a sickle. More of our men fell but we held our ground. Another order was given to fire by battalion. Hundreds of gun fired towards the enemy. General Barksdale, with his large mane of white hair, screaming at the top of his lungs for his men to advance, was hit by a bullet in his stomach. He was knocked off of his horse, and the advance faltered. More men from our battalion fell as the rebels tried to keep up their advance. The 105th Pennsylvania and the rest of Birney’s Division, kept up a steady fire into the heart of the advancing rebels. The charge was stopped and the battalion held their ground. The fight was over. The sounds of the wounded and dying were heard everywhere. Some soldiers crying out for water, others crying out for their mothers, and some crying out for Jesus. The carnage was great on both sides. Day two at the battle of Gettysburg has come to an end.
As my dad and I, and the rest of the company fell into line, as to the captains orders; my heart was pounding. I was actually in a battle during the Civil War! All of the smells were there, all of the atmosphere was there. It felt like I was in 1863. I couldn’t believe being fifteen years old and doing what I was doing. I was proud to be with my dad, I was proud to be an American, and proud to be doing what I was doing. In the distance, cannon fire was heard. The order was given to march. Flags were unfurled, music was playing and the dust of hundreds of soldiers marching was kicked up in the steady wind that started. This was it! I was going into battle. When we got to the field, the cavalry from both sides were fighting it out. Cannon fire from both sides were delivering hell on Earth. It was our turn to get into the mix. The 105th Pennsylvania, as well as the other regiments from Birney’s Division, lined up shoulder to shoulder. The flag bearer was fifteen feet in front of us, and the order was given to advance. I was standing right next to my dad, and his best friend was on the other side of me. We marched towards destiny. My heart was pounding, I was sweating in the hot sun, and I was having the time of my life. This beats any trip to the mall any day. The order was given to halt and to load. The rebels were advancing, the “STARS AND BARS” were flying in the wind. The feared rebel yell was echoed up and down their line. We held our ground as the order was given to fire by battalion. Four hundred or more rifles were preparing to unleash hell on the enemy. My first experience of firing my musket in battle was to begin. Every soldier fired their muskets at the same time. The thunderous sound was heard throughout the valley as the enemy fell. After our volley, the rebels prepared to fire on us. They unleashed the same hell we unleashed on them. Numerous soldiers on our side fell. We fired back and forth for what seemed like forever. I had black powder smeared all over my mouth from loading my rifle. The fog of battle hovered over the field. Cannon fire was everywhere, and chaos ruled the day. It was the best thing I have experienced in my entire life. Everybody was so into character, so passionate about what they were doing, that it made it all that much real. I was doing things I would have never thought I would have done before. I went from playing with dolls to playing soldier, and I know that no other girl of my age has probably ever experienced this before. As the fighting ceased, and the dead lay on the field, all of the firing stopped. The rebels were stopped. The second day of Gettysburg was a Union victory. Silence fell over the battlefield and TAPS were played. Everybody was silent. When the song ended, everybody erupted in cheers because both sides have done honor to both causes, and we were all here to live another day.
I went through civil war training, I marched, fought, and even “died” in battle. I slept in a tent, on the ground, and enjoyed conversations around the campfire. I have received my rations of hard tack and fat back. We trained some more and waited for the enemy to attack. I did it on weekends and then returned to a normal life. They did it for years and had no idea what to expect. More people should go through the experience of the men and women that kept their town together during the times of war and today in the times of peace.