Seventh Infantry U. S. Colored Troops
Organized at Baltimore, Md., September 26 to November 12, 1863. Duty at Camp Benedict,
Md., till March, 1864. Ordered to Portsmouth, Va., March 4, thence to Hilton Head, S. C.,
March 7-10, and to Jacksonville, Fla., March 14-15. Attached to Post of Jacksonville,
Fla., District of Florida, Dept. of the South, to July, 1864. District of Hilton Head,
S. C., Dept. of the South, July, 1864. Jacksonville, Fla., District of Florida, Dept.
of the South, to August, 1864. 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, 10th Corps, Army of the James,
Dept. of Virginia and North Carolina, to December, 1864. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division,
25th Corps, to January, 1866. Dept. of Texas to October, 1866.
SERVICE.-Duty at Jacksonville, Fla., till June, 1864. Cedar Creek April 2. Near
Jacksonville May 6. Near Camp Finnegan May 25. Near Jacksonville May 28. Expedition to
Camp Milton May 31-June 3. Camp Milton June 2. Moved to Hilton Head, S. C., June 27.
Expedition to North Edisto River and Johns and James Islands July 2-10. Near Winter's
Point July 3. King's Creek July 3. Skirmishes on James Island July 5 and 7. Burden's
Causeway, Johns Island, July 9. Moved to Jacksonville July 15. Expedition to Florida &
Gulf Railroad July 22-August 5. Moved to Bermuda Hundred, Va., August 6-11. Siege
operations against Petersburg and Richmond August, 1864, to April, 1865. Demonstration
north of James River August 16-20. Russell's Mills August 16. Strawberry Plains August
16-18. Battle of Chaffin's Farm, New Market Heights, September 28-30. Darbytown Road
October 13. Battle of Fair Oaks October 27-28. Near Richmond October 28. In trenches
before Richmond till March 27, 1865. Appomattox Campaign March 27-April 9. Hatcher's
Run March 29-31. Fall of Petersburg April 2. Pursuit of Lee April 3-9. Appomattox Court
House April 9. Surrender of Lee and his army. Moved to Petersburg April 11, and duty
there till May 24. Moved to Indianola, Texas, May 24June 23. Duty on the Rio Grande
and at various points in the Dept. of Texas, till October, 1866. Moved to Baltimore, Md.,
October 14-November 4. Mustered out October 13, 1866, and discharged at Baltimore, Md.,
November 15, 1866.
Regiment lost during service 1 Officer and 84 Enlisted men killed and mortally wounded
and 1 Officer and 307 Enlisted men by disease. Total 393.
Frederick A. Dyer "A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion" vol. 3
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Report of Col. James Shaw, jr., Seventh U. S. Colored
Troops, of operations September 28-30.
HDQRS. SEVENTH U. S. COLORED TROOPS,
In the Field, near Chaffin's Farm, Va., October 9, 1864.
CAPT.: In compliance with orders from the brigadier-general
commanding, I have the honor to make the following report of the part
taken by this regiment in the action of the 29th and 30th ultimo:
On the afternoon of the 28th the regiment broke camp near Petersburg
and marched to Deep Bottom, arriving at 3.30 a.m. on the 29th instant.
At 6 a.m. marched down the road in front of works and formed in
column of regiments in mass in the woods to the left. Crossed from
thence to the New Market road, and halted at noon near the line of
works now held by our forces. At about 2 p.m. we continued our march
down the New Market road and was ordered to form to the left of the
road in column by regiments in mass. I had passed down the regiment
directing this formation and had reached the center on my return, when
I found them moving to the right, and, hurrying to that flank, found we
had filed to the left on the Varina road and that the enemy had opened
heavily on our column with artillery. I was then directed by the general
commanding to form in "right into line" on the right of the road and in
a direction oblique to it, a slight descent in the ground partially covering
the line, then to charge and take an earth-work some three-quarters of
a mile in our front. Before the line was formed this order was
countermarched, and I was directed to send out four companies as
skirmishers for the same purpose. Companies C, D, G, and K were
designated for this purpose, Capt. Julius A. Weiss, the senior
captain, in command. Deploying these companies, Capt. Weiss
proceeded steadily to the front, under a heavy fire of artillery, and, as
he approached the works, charged into the very trenches, but was unable
to get farther. Not a man faltered, but all who did not fall reached the
work, charged boldly, and did all in their power to take it. They are all
missing. By direction of the general commanding I then sent forward
Company F, Capt. Pratt, to get as near as possible and keep the
enemy off the parapets, that if possible some of the first detachment
might be able to escape after dark. About 5.30 p.m. a body of the
enemy charged the left flank of the Eighth U. S. Colored Troops,
who were on our left, and four companies of the Seventh went to their
support. The Eight being out of ammunition we relieved them and after
dark withdrew our whole line and returned to the ground occupied at
noon.
During the engagement we lost the four companies almost entire, with
the addition of some 30 men from the rest of the battalions, 9 [10]
officers wounded and missing, viz: Capt. Julius A. Weiss, wounded
and missing; Capt. Thomas McCarty, missing; Capt. William H.
Smith, wounded; Lieut. George R. Sherman, missing; Lieut.
D. S. Mack, missing; Lieut. J. H. Prime, wounded; Lieut.
Sylvester Eler, wounded and missing; Lieut. Joseph Ferguson,
wounded and missing; Lieut. Robert M. Spinney, missing;
Lieut. C. G. Teeple, wounded slightly.
On the morning of the 30th we moved to the left, inside of the works
formerly occupied by the enemy, and at 1.30 p.m. again to the left to
the support of the Eighteeth Corps, taking a position between a battery
on our right and extending to the left, opposite the house. This part of
the line, though exposed to a heavy fire, was not directly attacked by the
enemy. They made two charges in heavy column on the works to our
left and were sent flying back with terrible loss.
My thanks are due to the officers and men of the command for that
cool, calm courage, so essential to success, that they exhibited on all
occasions.
We mourn the loss of those who have left us; better officers are seldom
found.
Total loss: Officers wounded and missing, 10; enlisted men killed, 20;
enlisted men missing, 129; enlisted men wounded, 76; total, 235.
I am, captain, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES SHAW, JR.,
Col., Cmdg.
Capt. M. BAILEY,
Assistant Adjutant-Gen.
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Report of Lieut. Col. Llewellyn F. Haskell, Seventh
U. S. Colored Troops, of operations October 27-28.
HDQRS. SEVENTH U. S. COLORED TROOPS,
In the Field, before Richmond, Va., October 29, 1864.
SIR: I have the honor to make the following report the part taken by the
Seventh Regt. U. S. Colored Troops in the operations of the 27th
and 28th of October, 1864:
At 5.45 a.m. on the 27th the regiment took its place in the brigade, and,
marching out through our works at the left of the First Division, I
formed in line of battle on the left of the Second Brigade, in the field
north of the Kell house, and then advanced through a very dense
undergrowth, halting several times, until the skirmishers charged and
took the enemy's line of picket-pits, when the main line halted and lay
down (being called to attention several times by increased firing in our
front) until 8.30 p.m., when I retired by the left flank to the south side
of the Kell house and bivouacked in line for the night. At 3.30 a.m. on
the 28th the regiment was formed and marched out to the skirmish line,
where I relieved the Twenty-ninth Connecticut Colored Volunteers at
4.45 a.m. The noise made in so doing attracted the attention of the
enemy and occasioned a brisk fire, which wounded a number of men.
At 9.20 a.m. I withdrew my line to the rebel picket-pits (which my
men reversed), leaving several men from each company at the edge of
the slashing to keep up the occasional fire ordered. At 2.15 p.m. I
withdrew these men from the edge of the slashing, by order from
Gen. Birney. At 3 p.m. the skirmishers of the Second Division
having fallen back, I followed their movements. By a mistake in
transmitting my orders along the line, I and F Companies remained on
the line fifteen minutes after the rest of our skirmish line had retired,
when they discovered that they were all alone and fell back (being fired
upon by the enemy, who was pushing out his skirmishers) just as I was
returning for them by order of Gen. Birney. The regiment being
assembled, I marched to camp with the brigade. No men could have
performed what we had to do better than both my officers and men did it.
I had 1 man killed and 1 officer and 30 men wounded.
I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
LLEWELYN F. HASKELL,
Lieut.-Col., Cmdg. Regt.
Lieut. J. E. LOCKWOOD,
Acting Assistant Adjutant-Gen.
Source: Official Records
PAGE 772-87 OPERATIONS IN SE. VA. AND N. C. [CHAP. LIV.
[Series I. Vol. 42. Part I, Reports. Serial No. 87.]
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