A Flag Raised in the Battle of Pickett's Mill

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Pickett's Mill.jpg

(Postwar illustration of the battle of Pickett's Mill by Alfred R. Waud. From The Mountain Campaigns in Georgia by Joseph M. Brown)

This account is from the memoirs of Pvt. William J. Oliphant, who was at this time serving in the 6th & 15th Texas consolidated, Granbury's Texas Brigade, Cleburne's Division, Hardee's Corps, Army of Tennessee.

There occurred at the Battle of [Pickett's Mill, Ga., May 27, 1864, Atlanta Campaign] an incident which impressed me greatly. In the last charge an Indiana regiment came up in front of our regiment in splendid style. Although we poured a deadly fire into them, they closed the gaps in their line and pressed steadily forward until they were almost upon us, but they could not stand our terrible fire. When but a few feet from the points of our bayonets they seemed to wither away, and those not killed or wounded were forced to fall back. The color bearer of the regiment fell with his colors, instantly another siezed [sic] the flag and held it aloft only to fall dead. Again and again it was raised until six brave men yielded up their lives in trying to keep it flying. The sixth man fell with the flag in front of our company and only about ten or twelve feet from us. There it lay a prize within our grasp. I could have reached it with a single bound but thought as it was already ours, I would wait until their line had been completely driven back before picking it up. When the Indiana regiment broke and fell back for the last time, leaving their flag on the ground at our feet, one of the brave fellows turned, and seeing it was being left behind, threw down his gun, came back and picked it up. He straightened himself to his full height, gritted his teeth and flapped his flag in our faces. Instantly a half dozen rifles were leveled on him and in another moment he too would have fallen riddled with bullets, but just then one of our boys cried out "don't shoot him, he's too brave." We lowered our rifles and gave him a cheer as he carried his flag safely away.​
Before the regiment got entirely away I captured a young prisoner, about my own age, and during the brief conversation we had on the field I learned that he and I had sat on the same bench in the primary school we both attended in Indiana before I moved to Texas, and when he told me the name of his Colonel I recognized it as one that my mother had often mentioned to me as a friend of her girlhood days. After the war was over I had positive information that the identical flag which I came so near capturing and which was saved only by the bravery of the man who turned back and lifted it aloft, was made by my Mother's oldest sister and presented by her to that regiment, and as the battle was fought on the 27th of May, my Mother's birth day, I was struck with the singular chain of coincidences.​

- Only a Private: A Texan Remembers the Civil War: The Memoirs of William J. Oliphant, edited by James M. McCaffrey, pp. 64-65.
 
The flag probably belonged to the 32nd Indiana Volunteer Infantry, which was the only Indiana regiment to fight Granbury's Texas Brigade in the battle and was in the vicinity of the 6th & 15th Texas.

Initially commanded by August Willich, the 32nd Indiana largely consisted of German immigrants. Willich later promoted to brigadier general in July 1862, Lt. Col. Henry von Trebra was then promoted to colonel. Von Trebra, however, didn't remain in command for long, coming down with typhoid fever in October of that year, later dying in August 1863.

Lt. Col. Francis "Frank" Erdelmeyer assumed command of the regiment. He was promoted to colonel after von Trebra's passing and led the 32nd until its original volunteers were mustered out of service in September 1864. Apparently, only Erdelmeyer lived in Indiana in prewar years, settling in Indianapolis in 1858. He was colonel of the 32nd at the time of the battle of Pickett's Mill, so unless the "Colonel" Oliphant mentions in his account was actually the lieutenant colonel (which I can't find who was at that time) or another officer in the regiment, it was likely Erdelmeyer who's name Oliphant recognized.

Photo of Col. Erdelmeyer:
3c29680v.jpg

(From LoC: https://www.loc.gov/resource/cph.3c29680/)
 
William J. Oliphant was born Sept. 30, 1845 in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. His family moved to Austin, Texas in 1853, when William was seven years old. At the outset of the war he enlisted in Co. G "Travis Rifles" of the 6th Texas Infantry, seeing action at Arkansas Post, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Ringgold Gap, and in the Atlanta Campaign until wounded and captured in the battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864. Imprisoned at Camp Chase until March 1865, he was exchanged in Virginia, joining Hood's Texas Brigade for a short while before the war came to an end. After the war, Oliphant studied photography, establishing himself as a well-known photographer in Austin. He was twice married, with three sons and a daughter. Oliphant died in Austin on Nov. 11, 1930 and is buried there in Oakwood Cemetery. Below is a photo of him in uniform, taken at the beginning of the war.
William J. Oliphant 1.jpg

(From the Lawrence T Jones III Texas photography collection, SMU DeGolyer Library: http://digitalcollections.smu.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/jtx/id/3879/rec/85)
 
DSC01479.JPG


Scenes from Pickett's Mill State Park - Above, Granbury's men were farther along the line of the rail fence in the trees in the background; according to Pat Cleburne's official report of the battle, when the Federals first advanced, Granbury's Brigade had just arrived and had had no time to throw up breastworks, leading the attackers to shout "We've got you without your da*n logs now!" Below, the fatal ravine that funneled the attackers from Hazen's Federal brigade straight into Granbury's destructive fire.

DSC01484.JPG
 
View attachment 316072

Scenes from Pickett's Mill State Park - Above, Granbury's men were farther along the line of the rail fence in the trees in the background; according to Pat Cleburne's official report of the battle, when the Federals first advanced, Granbury's Brigade had just arrived and had had no time to throw up breastworks, leading the attackers to shout "We've got you without your da*n logs now!" Below, the fatal ravine that funneled the attackers from Hazen's Federal brigade straight into Granbury's destructive fire.

View attachment 316073
Thanks, your photos are a good addition to this thread. I have been to the battlefield once before but it was a long time ago and don't have any photos to share. I remember I was surprised at how deep the "death ravine" was, though. The Federals had to charge across it while Granbury's men held the crest on the opposite slope. That terrain feature definitely made up for their lack of earthworks.

And for anyone that may have missed it, James N. has posted a nice thread on the battle and battlefield here:
https://civilwartalk.com/threads/the-battle-of-picketts-mill.85184/
 
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