Today, April 6th, is the 151st anniversary of the battle of Shiloh in Tennessee.
The 16th Iowa Regiment was there. In it, a no-doubt-scared 21-year-old, George, happens to have been the first person in the USA bearing my surname. His regiment was thrown into the fray to slow the Confederate tide. They made a stand. He was hit. He fell. Maybe he died instantly. Maybe he lay dying on the field as his regiment began to crumble around him. His regiment listed him as "killed in action at Shiloh", one way or another.
If anyone is interested, watch this rather well-made animated-and-video re-creation and synopsis of the battle. (In case the link goes down, it is called "Battle of Shiloh", produced by Wide Awake Films).
The 16th Iowa Regiment was there. In it, a no-doubt-scared 21-year-old, George, happens to have been the first person in the USA bearing my surname. His regiment was thrown into the fray to slow the Confederate tide. They made a stand. He was hit. He fell. Maybe he died instantly. Maybe he lay dying on the field as his regiment began to crumble around him. His regiment listed him as "killed in action at Shiloh", one way or another.
If anyone is interested, watch this rather well-made animated-and-video re-creation and synopsis of the battle. (In case the link goes down, it is called "Battle of Shiloh", produced by Wide Awake Films).
What the 16th Iowa may have looked like
that morning. (Art by Don Troiani).
that morning. (Art by Don Troiani).
Keep an eye on McClernand's division, if you watch the video. That is the divisional command under which the 16th Iowa was placed that morning. (April 6th, 1862). The regiment had arrived at dawn, disembarking from transport boats at Pittsburg Landing, just as the first shots were being fired south of Shiloh Church. As literally fresh-off-the-boat (from training camp, as best I can determine), they were not yet assigned to any brigade or division. (Several regiments in a brigade, several brigades in a division -- it looks like McClernand's Division had twelve infantry regiments at dawn, before the 16th Iowa and one other unassigned regiment were attached to it by Grant). The situation was desperate: If the Confederates had reached the river-landing in force, it could've been a major defeat for the Union.
As the regiment marched to the front, about 9 AM, its spirits were high. Perhaps they'd have been singing this song:
As the regiment marched to the front, about 9 AM, its spirits were high. Perhaps they'd have been singing this song:
The men of the 16th Iowa Regiment began to see thousands of Union soldiers, in various stages of panic, moving back towards the river landing. The 16th Iowa got in place and fired its first volley at about 10:30 AM. They exchanged fire at long range with the Confederates, who still had the initiative. Within an hour, the men of the 16th Iowa Regiment were in retreat. I get all of this from the report the colonel wrote after the battle.
The colonel of the regiment was proud, in his after-action report, that his men had maintained regimental integrity despite this being their first action -- They withdrew "in good order". They did not see action again that day, and were in reserve the next day. I guess Grant thought they weren't worth much, being so "green".
Anyway, it must have been in the timeframe of 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM, and in McClernand's area of the battlefield, that my possible-relative, George, was killed.
The colonel of the regiment was proud, in his after-action report, that his men had maintained regimental integrity despite this being their first action -- They withdrew "in good order". They did not see action again that day, and were in reserve the next day. I guess Grant thought they weren't worth much, being so "green".
Anyway, it must have been in the timeframe of 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM, and in McClernand's area of the battlefield, that my possible-relative, George, was killed.
Union Cemetery at Shiloh National Military Park
The probable final resting place of George J.
The probable final resting place of George J.
What do I know about this man? George seems to be the first man with my surname in the USA. He was born in Denmark around 1840. (My great-great-great grandfather was in Denmark at the time. George could've been his brother, for all I know, or some other relation).
He was listed as a farmhand on a Danish family's Iowa farm on the 1860 census. Mustered-into the Union Army in December 1861, he was dead four months later.
George didn't have much chance in life, did he. It's possible, or maybe probable, that no word ever reached relatives in Denmark of his fate. He was very-likely long forgotten by anyone on this Earth. A few years ago, I found his name, found his place of death, and resolved henceforth to always remember...April 6th.
He was listed as a farmhand on a Danish family's Iowa farm on the 1860 census. Mustered-into the Union Army in December 1861, he was dead four months later.
George didn't have much chance in life, did he. It's possible, or maybe probable, that no word ever reached relatives in Denmark of his fate. He was very-likely long forgotten by anyone on this Earth. A few years ago, I found his name, found his place of death, and resolved henceforth to always remember...April 6th.
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