Question for 1st Minnesota Enthusiasts!

[anastasialeeyoutube]

I'm working on a project - doing a lot of research - and I'm finding a couple different answers for this question, both in books and online, so I figured I'd ask in here.

Was Colonel William Colvill running or riding a horse during the charge of the 1st MN on July 2? I've found a couple articles saying he was riding a horse, example:

• While on horseback leading his men, a bit of shrapnel entered the top of his right shoulder and tore across his back, clipping off a part of his vertebra and lodging under his left scapula. There was a gleam of light, in which my glance took in a slope on my left. I saw numbers of our men lying upon it as they had fallen ," Colvill wrote. "Then came a shock like a sledge hammer on my back bone between the shoulders." Not realizing how badly he was hurt, he turned over command to Captain Coates who informed him. Just then, he was hit by a bullet in the ankle and fell off his horse, into the dried creek bed. " I saw just beside me a gully," he remembered, "not more than two feet wide…as I struck the ground I rolled over into it, and listening among other things the bullets 'zipping' along the ground."

And I've found other sources (more honestly) saying he was running alongside his men and ordered the double quick, bayonets leveled.

I'm wondering if anyone in here knows the right answer to that question or could point me in the right direction.

Another part to the question is how far did Colvill actually get? Because in one of his own accounts he says he was hit by shrapnel and fell to the ground and rolled back into the dried creek bed and that the battle continued around him. —> But then other accounts say he was hit before even making it to the creek bed (during the charge) and then rolled into it. —> And then another source says he was past the creek bed ordering his men to fire well through the fight - that was from one of his men though I forget their name at the moment.

But any clarification is appreciated. I'm big on details.

 

[rpkennedy]

From every account that I can find, Colville (along with Lt. Colonel Charles P. Adams and Major Mark W. Downie) was mounted during the attack. He certainly began the attack mounted (he rode up to the regiment shortly before it was ordered forward) and I can't find anything saying that he dismounted prior to his wounding. By his own account, when the shell fragment or bullet hit his right shoulder, creased his spine, and lodged in his left scapula, he attempted to dismount and a bullet smashed into his right ankle which knocked his foot from under him and he fell. As an aside, the regiment also lost Lt. Colonel Adams (hit 6 times) and Major Downie (hit 4 times) within just a few moments after Colville fell.

Again, Colville said that he rolled into a nearby gully when he was hit which tells me that he probably fell in the area of Plum Run. The regiment didn't advance much further than that before being falling back. I can't find much in the way of any officers exerting much control over the regiment once the field officers went down. I suppose that it's possible that Colville might have been exhorting his men but what he wrote seems to indicate that he was not consciously doing so.

Ryan

 

[anastasialeeyoutube]

From every account that I can find, Colville (along with Lt. Colonel Charles P. Adams and Major Mark W. Downie) was mounted during the attack. He certainly began the attack mounted (he rode up to the regiment shortly before it was ordered forward) and I can't find anything saying that he dismounted prior to his wounding. By his own account, when the shell fragment or bullet hit his right shoulder, creased his spine, and lodged in his left scapula, he attempted to dismount and a bullet smashed into his right ankle which knocked his foot from under him and he fell. As an aside, the regiment also lost Lt. Colonel Adams (hit 6 times) and Major Downie (hit 4 times) within just a few moments after Colville fell.

Again, Colville said that he rolled into a nearby gully when he was hit which tells me that he probably fell in the area of Plum Run. The regiment didn't advance much further than that before being falling back. I can't find much in the way of any officers exerting much control over the regiment once the field officers went down. I suppose that it's possible that Colville might have been exhorting his men but what he wrote seems to indicate that he was not consciously doing so.

Ryan

Thank you for the thorough reply! I can't entirely picture how the shell fragment (or bullet) would have travelled though. Hit his back and travelled across his back? Or through the front of the right shoulder, crossing behind the spine and into the left shoulder? I've found a couple different descriptions of his wounding too and I guess I can't picture the projectile trajectory. I know these probably seem like unimportant details.

Also if anyone else has opinions or facts, feel free to chime in. I appreciate it.

 

[rpkennedy]

Thank you for the thorough reply! I can't entirely picture how the shell fragment (or bullet) would have travelled though. Hit his back and travelled across his back? Or through the front of the right shoulder, crossing behind the spine and into the left shoulder? I've found a couple different descriptions of his wounding too and I guess I can't picture the projectile trajectory. I know these probably seem like unimportant details.

Also if anyone else has opinions or facts, feel free to chime in. I appreciate it.

Union Casualties at Gettysburg posits that he may have been leaning forward when he was hit. The bullet/fragment seems to have come from his right, entered someplace close to the point of his shoulder, and passed through to the left shoulder blade. It did chip a piece of his vertebrae off so it was deep enough to travel that path. Another possibility is that it came from the front, struck a bone and then veered to the left but I've never seen a detailed description of the wound to know for sure. There were definitely some odd ricochets which led to strange wounds so just about anything is possible. There was enough lead flying around so who knows where it came from?

Ryan

 

[Library Lady]

@rpkennedy , do you know if there is an easy way to find out whose case notes are included in The Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Rebellion and which volume they're in? I have no idea if any of Colonel Colvill's treatment is included in that work, but it's a place I would be interested in looking if I knew how to find specific people. For example, I do know that Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's initial treatment for his Cold Harbor wound is included, but I have no idea in which volume or how to find it easily.

 

[Reconstructed Rebel]

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's initial treatment for his Cold Harbor wound

A minor correction - Chamberlain's horrific wounding occurred during the Siege of Petersburg, not at Cold Harbor.

 

[Library Lady]

A minor correction - Chamberlain's horrific wounding occurred during the Siege of Petersburg, not at Cold Harbor.

Oops! For some reason, I keep turning Cold Harbor, Petersburg and The Crater into one big ball of horrible. I'd like to claim that it's because I'm being distracted by World War II at the moment, but no, I do it on a regular basis.

 

[Reconstructed Rebel]

Oops! For some reason, I keep turning Cold Harbor, Petersburg and The Crater into one big ball of horrible. I'd like to claim that it's because I'm being distracted by World War II at the moment, but no, I do it on a regular basis.

It was one big ball of horrible, so that makes good sense.

 

[Tom Elmore]

A colonel would normally be mounted, but unless there is a more specific source, my sense is that Colonel Colville went into the charge on foot. The best account I can find comes from an address by Captain J. N. Searles:

"The men were dropping fast all along the line. At that time Colonel Colville with Captain Coates was standing close by the colors, and he [Colville] says that 'one of the last things I remember as I stood there was one of the color-guard turning to me as he was raising his weapon to fire, making some remark, with a smile on his face. I was then struck with two bullets from the right, one passing under the shoulder-blade, striking the spine, and the other bruising my ankle, and I reeled and half turned around, Coates said, 'Colonel, you are badly hurt,' and I answered, 'Take care of the boys,' and fell and rolled into a gully out of the range of the fire.'"

In another account (quoted by Moe in his book, The Last Full Measure), Colville said he was struck in the back between the shoulders "like a sledge hammer" by what he supposed was a shell fragment. That could mean a fragment from an enemy shell passing backward, or a "friendly" shell fragment fired by Battery C, 4th U.S. immediately in the rear. It could even have been a minie ball from Lang's 5th Florida, since the 1st Minnesota in their advance had left Lang's brigade to their right rear, and some of the Floridians turned around and began firing into their right rear and right flank, inflicting considerable damage.

 

[rpkennedy]

@rpkennedy , do you know if there is an easy way to find out whose case notes are included in The Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Rebellion and which volume they're in? I have no idea if any of Colonel Colvill's treatment is included in that work, but it's a place I would be interested in looking if I knew how to find specific people. For example, I do know that Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's initial treatment for his Cold Harbor wound is included, but I have no idea in which volume or how to find it easily.

The 3 volumes are digitized and can be found as pdfs online which is how I have them. I can't find a general index of patients but I did do a quick search in the files and couldn't find an entry for William Colville. He was initially treated at the Lightner farm and was moved to the Pierce house on July 28. He left the Pierce house on crutches in October and went to a hospital in Harrisburg, PA until February 1864 before he went home to Minnesota.

Ryan

 

[rpkennedy]

A colonel would normally be mounted, but unless there is a more specific source, my sense is that Colonel Colville went into the charge on foot. The best account I can find comes from an address by Captain J. N. Searles:

"The men were dropping fast all along the line. At that time Colonel Colville with Captain Coates was standing close by the colors, and he [Colville] says that 'one of the last things I remember as I stood there was one of the color-guard turning to me as he was raising his weapon to fire, making some remark, with a smile on his face. I was then struck with two bullets from the right, one passing under the shoulder-blade, striking the spine, and the other bruising my ankle, and I reeled and half turned around, Coates said, 'Colonel, you are badly hurt,' and I answered, 'Take care of the boys,' and fell and rolled into a gully out of the range of the fire.'"

In another account (quoted by Moe in his book, The Last Full Measure), Colville said he was struck in the back between the shoulders "like a sledge hammer" by what he supposed was a shell fragment. That could mean a fragment from an enemy shell passing backward, or a "friendly" shell fragment fired by Battery C, 4th U.S. immediately in the rear. It could even have been a minie ball from Lang's 5th Florida, since the 1st Minnesota in their advance had left Lang's brigade to their right rear, and some of the Floridians turned around and began firing into their right rear and right flank, inflicting considerable damage.

Lt. Searles helped Lt. Colonel Adams from the field on the night of July 2.

Another excellent source. Colville did correspond with Batchelder and I'll look at what he said there.

As an aside, Pfanz in Gettysburg: The Second Day wrote that all of the field officers went in on foot because the order to attack came so fast that they didn't have time to retrieve their horses who were posted nearby (page 410, Kindle edition).

Ryan

 

[rpkennedy]

From Colvill's letter to Batchelder, August 30, 1866:

"The charge was made with officers dismounted. The horses held grouped at a little distance to the right and rear of the regt., just upon the Ridge."

There we go.

Ryan

 

[Belfoured]

From Colvill's letter to Batchelder, August 30, 1866:

"The charge was made with officers dismounted. The horses held grouped at a little distance to the right and rear of the regt., just upon the Ridge."

There we go.

Ryan

Just another example from many showing why this board is a valuable resource.

 

[anastasialeeyoutube]

Just another example from many showing why this board is a valuable resource.

Omg you guys have no idea how much I appreciate your help. I don't want to say much about my project yet, maybe in the future, but I want the historical details as accurate as possible. I've got 100+ pages of research and analyses typed up and your sources help a lot. Thank you all!

 

[FZ11]

A colonel would normally be mounted, but unless there is a more specific source, my sense is that Colonel Colville went into the charge on foot. The best account I can find comes from an address by Captain J. N. Searles:

"The men were dropping fast all along the line. At that time Colonel Colville with Captain Coates was standing close by the colors, and he [Colville] says that 'one of the last things I remember as I stood there was one of the color-guard turning to me as he was raising his weapon to fire, making some remark, with a smile on his face. I was then struck with two bullets from the right, one passing under the shoulder-blade, striking the spine, and the other bruising my ankle, and I reeled and half turned around, Coates said, 'Colonel, you are badly hurt,' and I answered, 'Take care of the boys,' and fell and rolled into a gully out of the range of the fire.'"

In another account (quoted by Moe in his book, The Last Full Measure), Colville said he was struck in the back between the shoulders "like a sledge hammer" by what he supposed was a shell fragment. That could mean a fragment from an enemy shell passing backward, or a "friendly" shell fragment fired by Battery C, 4th U.S. immediately in the rear. It could even have been a minie ball from Lang's 5th Florida, since the 1st Minnesota in their advance had left Lang's brigade to their right rear, and some of the Floridians turned around and began firing into their right rear and right flank, inflicting considerable damage.

Wound is more consistent with a bullet wound as Coville stated.

 

[W117Monte]

Addressing Gettysburg recently had a podcast about the 1st as well. Check it out!!

 

[anastasialeeyoutube]

Addressing Gettysburg recently had a podcast about the 1st as well. Check it out!!

Thank you. I'll do that tonight after work. Much appreciated.