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A Guide to Military Organizations & Installations N C 1861-1865 (Manarin)
On Feb 17, 1864, an act to organize "Reserves" was adopted by the CS Congress. A large number of men in the Home
Guard was enrolled in the CS service. This reduced the Home Guard to such an extent that when mobilized they were consolidated into temporary Regts & were divided into 1st, 2nd & 3rd class. Each class was to serve successive tours of
duty of about 30 days each. When each class, was mobilized it was organized into three Regts, thus making 9 Regts of Home Guards.
The law passed by the CS Congress on Feb 17, 1864, placed in the "Reserves" those men between the ages of 17 & 18
& between 45 & 50. The younger age group was called out in April & May 1864, & by the end of June 8 Bns of Jr Reserves were organized. As these Bns were organized into Regts they were given line-numbers.

The 1st & 6th Bns, with two other Co's added, were organized into the 1st Regt of Reserves (70th NC Regt).

The 2nd & 5th Bns, with two additional Co's, were organized into the 2nd Regt of Reserves (71st N C Regt). The
4th, 7th, & 8th Bns were organized into the 3rd Regt of Reserves (72nd N C Regt).

The words "Jr" & Sr" were not officially used & the 1st three "Reserve" Regts were designated 1st, 2nd, & 3rd Regt, or 70th, 71st, & 72nd N C. When the men between 45 & 50 were mobilized, they were organized into Regts designated as the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, & 8th Regts of Reserves, or 73rd, 74th, 76th, 77th, & 78th N C. The 75th was the 7th Cav.
Up to this time the only large group of men that had escaped military service were the detailed men. These men were under
CS jurisdiction & could not be recruited into any State organization.

In Nov 1864, the CS authorities directed that the detailed men in NC be organized into Regts & Bns. Three Regts were organized & designated the 1st, 2nd, & 3rd Regts Detailed Men. Their line-numbers were 81st, 82nd, & 83rd NC Regts.

10/8/64 Lee was pressed for troops at Petersburg & so was Whiting. On this date Lee called for the 50th, 67th & 68th NC Regts while they would then be replaced by reserves in NC. He asked if the 10th NC Arty could be sent as well.
He also wanted NC's detailed men

At the end of Nov, 2 Regts were formed of detailed men, & by Feb 65 Holmes had 3 Regts [1st, 2nd & 3rd] & 2 Bns [Rencher's & Raleigh City Bn] of detailed men

The scarcity of information on State organizations, such as Militia & Home Guards, is because many of the records were poorly kept, & these that survived were not turned over to the Federal Gov’t in quantity.
Most of the Co's, enthused with a patriotic spirit, adopted a nickname, which usually included the name of their town or county. These, however, were supplanted as the war progressed by the use of the cdg officer's name when referring to the unit. The method of numerically designating Bns & Regts was established by the State & CS authorities; however, the men in the ranks would generally refer to their Co, Bn, or Regt by their cdg officer's name.
Consequently, units in the Southern army were more commonly known by their cdg officer rather than their numerical designation. It should be noted that often after a cdg officer was killed or otherwise unable to retain command, the unit would still be called his Co, Bn, or Regt, even though he no longer commanded it.

1st Bn NC Jr Reserves aka the 9th Bn NC Jr Reserves; & Mallard's Bn NC Jr Reserves. By E. R. Hampton, Hospital Steward
One who writes history ought to be familiar with all the facts necessary to give a complete narration of such events, in their various details, so that by methodical arrangement one harmonious & consistent whole may result. In attempting to write a sketch of the 1st Bn of NC Jr Reserves [The 1st Bn NC Jr Reserves, was 1st known as the 9th Bn NC Jr Reserves, but was re-designated when Maj C. W. Broadfoot's Bn, also known as the 1st Bn NC Jr Reserves was merged into a Regt, Judge Walter Clark designates this unit the 20th NC Bn in his NC Regts], & the part it took in the Civil War, I am forced to admit, in the beginning that I am not thus fully equipped for the undertaking. But in the absence of some one better qualified to do justice to the memory of the brave young men that composed it, I have consented to undertake this patriotic &, I may say sacred duty. In a humble way I hope to contribute something to rescue & preserve from obscurity & oblivion the memory of my comrades. I shall give the organization of our Bn, & recite, as far as in my power lies, the part it took in the great struggle between the States of the North & South, in the latter part of the conflict. I will narrate such facts as I can from my own knowledge & from whatever other information I have been able to collect.
Maj John W. Moore, in compiling his Roster of NC Troops in the War Between the States, fails to assign it a place in his work as an organization, but the Co’s composing the Bn have been improperly placed by him as composing a part of the 70th Regt. The F & S officers which he gives of that Regt on page 294, Vol. 4 of his Roster, never had any command over the five Co’s that follow from pages 294 to 303, but those five Co’s in fact constituted the 1st Bn (originally the 9th) of Jr Reserves. Evidently, Maj Moore in getting up his work had to deal with a great deal of confusion, as is shown in this particular instance, & which accounts for the note he appends in which, after giving what he supposed to be the 1st five Co’s of the 70th Regt, he says: "The rolls of the remaining Co’s of this Regt have not yet been found, but I am in hopes of yet receiving them in which event they will be inserted further on in this volume."

Organization
The 1st Bn, composed of young men or boys between the ages of 17 & 18 years, was organized into Co’s at Camp Clingman in the town of Asheville, at a point now in the heart of the city of Asheville, near the present residence of the Hon. Thomas D. Johnston, on Grove Street, in May & June 1864. At 1st the Bn was composed of only 3 Co’s.
Co A--Buncombe & McDowell [Counties]--Capt, Chas. M. Hall; 1st Lt, J. J. Culberson; 2nd Lt’s N. N. Sumner & B. F. Young.
Co B--Rutherford, Polk & Henderson [Counties]--Capt, J. L. Eaves; 1st Lt G. W. Suttle; 2nd Lt S. T. Blanton & L. M. Gross.
Co C--Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Polk, & Rutherford [Counties]--Capt, William P. Lane; 1st Lt’s S. E. Smith, A. J. Liner, A. C. Webb, & T. R. Gray.
Dr. D. T. Millard, of Asheville, was elected Maj 27 June 1864; Lt Thos. E. Brown of Abingdon, Va, was appointed Adjt; Alonzo Rankin, of Asheville, Sgt-Maj; & Samuel D. Burgin, of Swannanoa, Buncombe County, was appointed Commissary Sgt. Afterwards, at Wilmington, the writer was appointed Hospital Steward.

After the organization of the 1st 3 Co’s into a Bn at Asheville, it remained there in camp of instruction, & on police & guard duty as a part of Col Palmer's command until the latter part of the summer of 1864, when it was ordered & moved to Camp Vance, near Morganton, where it remained for several weeks on garrison duty. Just previous to its going to Camp Vance a portion of Kirk's command had made a raid on that camp 28 June & captured the small garrison stationed there & had carried them away prisoners, back through the mountains into East Tenn 77 Off. Rec. Union & Confed. Armies, 234, 239, a very full account. Part of the Co of Capt Conrad, afterwards of Co E, which was in camp there, was captured. The remnant which escaped capture afterwards made up a part of Co E. Capt Conrad was himself among the captured, but some good fortune escaped from his captors & afterwards had the Davie County boys added to the remnant of his Co, which escaped from Camp Vance & on a reorganization at Salisbury, he was again elected Capt & was attached to the Bn as Co E. After the Bentonville fight Capt Conrad resigned & returned to his home in Yadkin County & was twice captured by Gen Stoneman's command, but succeeded in again making his escape in both instances.

Salisbury--2 Co’s added
From Camp Vance we were sent to Salisbury, 10/4/64, to perform guard duty over the Federal prisoners who were in the CS prison at that place & were encamped a few hundred yards east of the Federal cemetery.
At that place 10/17 we were joined by Co D, commanded by Capt J. A. Stephenson, composed of boys from the counties of Alexander, Ashe, & Wilkes. The 1st Lt was E. F. Prather, 2nd Lt’s W. C. York, & G. W. Wilcox; &, as already stated, we were also joined by Co E, commanded by Capt S. F. Conrad, composed of boys from the counties of Davie, Surry & Yadkin. The 1st Lt was James B. Douthit of Davie, (killed at South West Creek); 2nd Lt’s, G. W. Sain, of Davie, & Edwin C. Lineberry, of Yadkin.
The Bn remained on duty at Salisbury as a part of the prison guard until about the last of Oct, when it was ordered to Wilmington & went into quarters at Camp Lamb. We were on no active duty, except drill, for a few weeks while at this place & had a comparatively easy time, except that bread stuff at one time got very scarce in the Commissary Dept & for several days our rations consisted of one pound of rice & a half pound of Nassau bacon brought into Wilmington by the blockade runners. It was only a month or six weeks after our arrival at Camp Lamb until the boys entered upon their active & earnest soldier life in the field, which continued until the end of the war & during which period they received their "baptism of fire" with that heroic fortitude & patient endurance that has ever characterized the sturdy, gallant & intrepid mountain boys of the "Old North State."

Belfield, Va.
On 12/8 we received marching orders to a more active field of duty. We were put aboard a freight train & hurried off to Belfield, Va, to meet & help drive back a force of the enemy under command of Gen Warren, that was approaching the NC border from the direction of Stoney Creek & Petersburg for the purpose of destroying the Petersburg & Weldon RR & cutting off that line of communication with Petersburg & Richmond. By some accident our train was partially derailed at Wilson, NC, & our progress toward Belfield was delayed for some hours. We were after this delay got back on the track again & proceeded on toward Belfield, arriving at Hicksford on the south side of Hicks' Run opposite the town of Belfield, about noon on the 9th. When we reached Hick's Run our train crossed slowly over the bridge into Belfield, but the approaching line of the enemy's skirmishers & sharpshooters made it necessary to back the train to the south side of the creek at Hicksford, where we were ordered to disembark & take up our position along the south bank of the stream on the left of the RR line, & immediately set to work to throw up a line of trenches. The enemy's skirmish line, still advancing, soon put us in range of their fire, which continued almost incessantly the entire afternoon & until late in the night. We were somewhat protected by a Btry which from an elevation a short distance in our rear, opened fire over our heads upon the enemy's skirmish line, holding them in check until our trenches were so far completed as to afford shelter from their fire. On our left & joining to our Bn was a Bn of La Zouaves, & on our right & on the opposite side of the RR from us was a Regt of Jr Reserves. It was a raw, rainy day & in the afternoon turned into a heavy, disagreeable sleet. Being in range of the enemy's fire made it necessary for the boys to keep pretty close in their fresh dug trenches during the afternoon & the greater part of the night, without much fire; with only a very scant supply of blankets & rations, it rendered their experiences ever memorable in the minds of our boys who watched & waited in the rain & sleet, on that dreary Dec night.
The enemy succeeded in reaching & burning the depot & a considerable portion of the town of Belfield that afternoon & night, having torn up & destroyed the RR track as they advanced, by burning the rails on piles of cross ties & twisting them around trees & telegraph poles into almost every conceivable shape. After accomplishing this, their skirmishers withdrew & with their main force encamped about five miles north of that place toward Petersburg.
Although relieved from the danger of being struck by the enemy's bullets by their withdrawal, the terrible weather allowed the boys little or no sleep that night. The casualties among our boys were few that afternoon. Sylvester Pierson, of Co A, fell mortally wounded by the premature explosion of a shell thrown over our heads from our own Btry, & died that night, & George McCormick, of the same Co was wounded in the arm; Corp Leonard & a Pvt of Co E, were slightly wounded. There were no others killed or wounded in the Bn that I remember.
Early on the morning of the 10th we were started out on the march in pursuit of the enemy along the line of RR which they had laid in ruins the day before. A part of Gen Wade Hampton's command came in from our left, among them the 9th NC Regt (1st Cav), & passed by our line, crossed Hicks' Run & began the advance. Our Bn, the La Zouaves & other commands took up the line of march through the mud & sleet, following after the retreating enemy about ten or twelve miles. Gen Warren's forces having succeeded in destroying the RR for the time being, as far down as Belfield & being met there with such resistance as to render further advance difficult, if not impossible, were now hurrying back to the shelter of the main body of the Federals in the neighborhood of Stoney Creek About 7 miles north of Belfield a part of Gen Hill's Corps came in upon the left in advance of us, & a sharp engagement took place for a few minutes. The enemy was soon in full retreat back to their stronghold & we went into camp for the night. The experiences of that day were indelibly impressed upon my mind as one of the bitterest of my life, & never to be forgotten. Because of very badly inflamed heels, caused by trying to wear a pair of course, stubborn new shoes, drawn from the QM's store just before leaving Wilmington, I was unable to wear them on this march & found it more endurable to march all day through the sleet & mud barefoot, with the shoes thrown across my shoulders, than to attempt to do so.

Return to NC
Next morning, the 11th, we were ordered back to Belfield & we returned to that place, going to our old camp at the trenches which we had occupied on the 9th & morning of the 10th. By this time the weather had somewhat moderated. Here we got the 1st rations since leaving Wilmington. Owing to the great haste with which we had been carried away from there our supply was very meager, so much so that we were practically without rations for nearly three days. It was a great relief to our hungry, chilled & worn-out boys to get where they could get a little rest & rations once more. After resting a few hours & getting our dinner we again boarded our train & that evening went down to Weldon & encamped there for the night. An accident occurred that night which resulted in the wounding of two men, both of Co A. A stack of guns, which had hurriedly & carelessly stacked, fell down, by which one of them was discharged & shot Dobson, of McDowell, through the knee, from which he died, & Matthews, of the same county, was painfully, but not dangerously, wounded in the leg. Next morning, 12/12, we again boarded our train & returned to our old quarters at Camp Lamb. We had done no hard fighting, but we had been exposed to the enemy's fire for the first time. We had gained some knowledge of soldier's life. We had endured fearful exposure in wind & rain & sleet in want of blankets & food. We had from the 8th to the 12th travelled over 400 miles by rail & spent two days marching & a day in the trenches. This gave us our first real insight into the life of a soldier.
1st Attack on Fort Fisher
Active soldier life had now begun & our rest at our old quarters at Camp Lamb was destined to be of short duration. On account of exposure encountered in the Belfield campaign, some of the boys were taken sick. I was of that number & was sent to the hospital at Wilmington. About 12/20 the Bn was ordered to break camp & move down to Masonboro Sound, near Fort Fisher It went into camp there about two miles from the fort & remained there a few days, until the attack on the fort began on the 24th, when Gen Butler's fleet appeared & opened the bombardment. The boys were ordered out of camp & after patrolling & watching along the coast for the enemy to land, until late in the night, went into the fort.
The next morning, Sun (which was Christmas day), the bombardment was renewed by the enemy's fleet & kept up all day. In the afternoon the enemy affected a landing. The boys were then ordered out of the fort to the front to assist in repelling any attack upon it or the field guns. They took their position in front of the rifle pits. Some of the field Arty men for some reason left their guns, & by command of Maj Reilly, Lt Liner, of Co C, with a portion of his Co, undertook to man the guns, which they did very successfully & did good service. In about an hour the coast was cleared, the enemy returning to their vessels, except a Capt & a few men who had been captured by the boys. The Bn remained under arms in a cold rain all night. The enemy after that night abandoned the attack on the fort & drew out to sea. Adjt Brown was wounded in this engagement & was never with the command anymore. Pvt Chapman, of Co A, & Pvt Carrigan, of Co D, were wounded.
Coleraine
The enemy having abandoned their attack & withdrawn from before Fort Fisher, the Bn returned to Camp Lamb on the 27th, where they had another short respite from active service. It lasted but a short time, however. The enemy had possession of New Bern & was threatening to overrun all of eastern NC. Along in Jan 1865, they had entered Albemarle Sound & had gone up Chowan River with one or more-gun boats & a small force had affected a landing at Coleraine. The Bn was again ordered to leave Camp Lamb, for the last time, & were sent by train to Halifax. It was a cold, uncomfortable trip. For want of room inside the cars some of the boys were compelled to ride on top of the train & it was so cold that one of the boys froze & fell off the car on the trip. Arriving at Halifax we were placed with the 71st Regt (2nd Jr’s) & some other troops, under Col John H. Anderson, of that Regt & marched down the Roanoke & across the country to Coleraine, encountering flooded streams & other obstacles, to meet the enemy at that point. They did not hold their ground to give our boys the glory of an engagement with them, but at our approach they went back aboard their gun boats & evacuated the place.
From Coleraine the Bn returned to Goldsboro & took up camp there for a few weeks. On or about 12 or 13 Jan, while in camp at Goldsboro all the boys in the Bn over 18 years of age were transferred to regular CS Regts to fill up their depleted ranks.
Battle of South West Creek
A short time after this the enemy coming out from New Bern was advancing toward Kinston. The Bn was ordered away from Goldsboro to move to Kinston & was attached to Gen Hoke's Div. A few miles below Kinston Gen Hoke's force met & engaged the enemy, whom they repulsed. Some 1,500 or more of the Federal forces were taken prisoners. In this fight 8-9 March, the Bn was actively engaged & sustained considerable loss in killed & wounded. While supporting Gen Hoke's left wing a portion of the enemy's force advanced upon & engaged our boys. In the morning we held a position on the south side of the RR, but in the afternoon were ordered to change position to the north side, crossing very near where the enemy was advancing. As soon as we crossed over the enemy attacked our boys, to which they promptly responded & a sharp engagement followed. Here for the 1st time, the boys were ordered to make a charge, which they did effectively, & drove the enemy back. Co’s C & E were particularly exposed by being in the road without any shelter, & suffered considerable loss in wounded; Capt Lane, of Co C, was shot through the breast & seriously wounded; Lt Liner, of Co C, received two slight flesh wounds; Lt Douthit (who is named in Maj Moore's "Roster" as Lt Danthel), & Lt Lineberry, of Co E, were both mortally wounded. This Co, E, had 9 men wounded in this engagement. Corp W. R. Hill, of Co D, was killed & several others of that Co wounded, but I am not able now to give names & number. Maj Millard, being absent from the Bn since leaving Wilmington, Capt Hall, a brave & courageous officer was in command.
Bentonville
After the engagement at Kinston, the Bn was assigned to the Bgde of Jr Reserves, which already embraced the 70th, 71st, & 72nd Regts (1st, 2nd & 3rd Jr’s), under Col J. H. Nethercutt. This Bgde belonged to Hoke's Div, & met the enemy next at Bentonville 19-21 March. A portion of Gen Johnston's army was there confronting the advancing columns of Sherman's army approaching from the south. At this engagement the Bn took part & while not engaged in the hottest of the conflict it was exposed both to the Arty & musketry fire of the enemy at frequent intervals for 3 days & sustained some losses. There were quite a number of the boys wounded at this engagement, but I am unable to give the names of any except Pvt Carter, of Co E.
The Retreat
After the Bentonville engagement the Bn made no other history except in common with the retreating forces of Gen J. E. Johnston before the victorious columns of Sherman's invading army. The fortunes of the Confederacy were rapidly yielding to the force of overwhelming numbers & the want of army supplies. The great leader, 2nd only to Lee, with his army must soon capitulate to an army of invaders of far superior strength. The fate of that army was shared by the 1st Bn of Jr Reserves. It moved with the Bgde & that wing of our army from Bentonville on through Smithfield, Raleigh, Durham & other intervening points until the final surrender 4/26 near Greensboro, then, along with their fathers & older brothers, scar-worn veterans that had contested the Federal advance from Chickamauga to Greensboro, the boys laid down their arms on the grave of the "Lost Cause" to return to their homes & enter again the paths of civil life. Each officer & man in the army was paid $1.25 in silver. The Jr Bgde received their paroles 5/2/65, at Bush Hill, between High Point & Trinity College, in Randolph County
This ends the real history of the 1st Bn of NC Jr Reserves & its services in the Civil War of 36 years ago. There are many incidents & matters of detail which went to make up our army life that would no doubt, be interesting to individual members, to have recorded in history; want of information renders it impossible to go into them. I have given the history of the organization & its services with some of the incidents & result’s attending its military career in the best manner I am able with the means at my command, which I feel sure is substantially correct in outline if not literally correct in detail.

It will not be improper for me to say here, that while I have been engaged in writing this sketch that I have been greatly aided in my work by Capt S. F. Conrad, of Co E, & Lt Joseph Liner, of Co C. Also, Sgt A. H. Matheson, of Co D, & Mr. E. E. Smith of Settle, NC, who married the sister of Lt Lineberry, who fell at Kinston, all of whom have furnished me much valuable data by which I have been enabled to write up the movements of the Bn after my connection with it ceased. Without their aid my work must have been very incomplete. I regret very much that I have not been able to get any assistance or information from any member of Co B, although I made considerable effort to do so.
Before closing this sketch, I think it will not be improper for me to call attention to some inaccuracies in Maj Moore's "Roster" which appear to my own personal knowledge or by information from others who know the facts. The 4th volume of his work contains many errors in names & rank of men & Co’s composing our Bn. It is not my purpose, but his work is as perfect as he was able to make it with the material accessible to him & taken as a whole, he has given the State a valuable work. I think it quite likely the Co rolls were often very badly or imperfectly kept, either from want of proper qualification, or neglect, of Co officers whose duty it was to attend to them. This, taken in connection with the confusion that existed at the close of the war, the loss of valuable records, etc., will account for the fact that his work is not & could not be absolutely correct. I will correct a few mistakes that I am aware of, viz:
In Co A, J. M. Greenlee was 1st, or Orderly Sgt, & not J. E. Dobson. J. Y. Hemphill, of McDowell County, was 2nd Sgt Dobson was wounded at Weldon 11 Dec 1864, & died from the effects of his wound, as already stated.
In Co B, the name of the Capt was J. L. Eaves, & not J. L. Evans, as given in the "Roster."
In Co C, the name of the 2nd Lt was A. J. or Joseph Liner, & not "Lines," as printed in "Roster."
In Co D, the name of the 2nd Sgt is A. H. Matheson, & not "A. H. Wilkerson," as printed in "Roster."
In Co E, the name of Capt Conrad is "S. F." instead of "F. S." The name of the 1st Lt is James B. Douthit (mortally wounded at Kinston), & not "James B. Danthel."
There are undoubtedly many mistakes among the names of Pvt’s & NCO’s on the "Roster" that perhaps can never be corrected.
In conclusion I desire to say that in looking back over a period of 36 years since the boys laid down their arms at Greensboro & saw their last active service in that brave, but overpowered army of the strangled Confederacy, I am reminded how swiftly time has flown & that while we were of the youngest of those who entered the military service of the "Lost Cause," the survivors are now men who have long gone to the final reward. Others have sought homes in distant States. More than a 3rd of a century has passed since they were last together in a common cause. The mellowing influences of time have done much to allay the surging billows of bitterness & strife that surrounded their earlier years & they remain only in the retrospect of the past. Let us hope that our children may never see such fratricidal strife in their day & that in the "great beyond" we may meet our old comrades & realize the full fruition of hope in a grand reunion in the land of eternal joy & peace.
E. R. Hampton Bryson City, NC 26 April 19

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