Smashing of Scales' North Carolina Brigade on July 1

Tom Elmore

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Tablet image from waymarking.com Scales portrait from Library of Congress

The Confederate brigade under Brig. Gen. Alfred Moore Scales sustained upwards of 800 casualties within a period of about 10 minutes on the afternoon of July 1. Scales' North Carolinians, along with Perrin's South Carolinians, were tasked with finishing off the Union First Corps in their last stand on Seminary Ridge. The Federals had been battered all day long, but evidently still had some fight left in them. Scales' five regiments (13-16-22-34-38 North Carolina), totaling about 1,327 officers and enlisted men, advanced to the fray with their left guiding on the Chambersburg Pike. Just beyond (east of) the McPherson farm buildings, they stepped over and between the Virginians of Brockenbrough's brigade, who had reached that spot a half hour earlier, but had decided to await reinforcements rather than try to push the Federals off Seminary Ridge. Scales' men continued their march up the slope of a rise 175 yards east of the McPherson buildings, and when they reached the crest they now came into full view of the Federals posted 500 yards away. At that moment they confronted 17 cannon from four artillery batteries, the remnants of Meredith's Iron Brigade and Stone's Pennsylvanians, and elements from the brigades of Biddle, Cutler and Baxter.

A cannoneer in Battery B, 4th U.S. Artillery, whose gun was located 50 yards or so from Mary Thompson's house, explains what happened next: "Then for seven or eight minutes ensued probably the most desperate fight ever waged between artillery and infantry at close range without a particle of cover on either side. They gave us volley after volley in front and flank, and we gave them double canister as fast as we could load. ... At his time our left half-battery, taking their first line en echarpe, swept it so clean with double canister that the Rebels sagged away from the road to get cover from the fences and trees that lined it. From our second round on a gray squirrel could not have crossed the road alive. ... Up and down the line men reeling and falling; splinters flying from wheels and axles where bullets hit; in rear, horses tearing and plunging, made with wounds or terror; drivers yelling, shells bursting, shot shrieking overhead, howling about our ears or throwing up great clouds of dust where they struck; the musketry crashing on three sides of us; bullets hissing, humming and whistling everywhere; cannon roaring; all crash on crash and peal on peal, smoke, dust, splinters, blood, wreck and carnage indescribable; but the brass guns of Old B still bellowed and not a man or boy flinched or faltered."

Brig. Gen. Scales wrote, "the brigade encountered a most terrific fire of grape and shell on our flank, and grape and musketry in our front. Every discharge made sad havoc in our line, but still we pressed on at a double-quick until we reached the bottom [depression], a distance of about 75 yards from the ridge [rise] we had just crossed, and about the same distance from the college [Seminary] in our front. Here I received a painful wound from a piece of shell, and was disabled. Our line had been broken up, and now only a squad here and there marked the place where regiments had rested." Scales' brigade suffered a similar fate to that of Iverson's a couple of hours earlier, except they avoided capture thanks largely to the personal courage of Col. Abner Perrin, commander of the other brigade in the charge, who personally led his 1st South Carolina regiment forward to a position astride the flank of the Union infantry in front of the Seminary, which quickly unraveled the entire Federal line on the ridge and precipitated their retreat through the town. For that deed, Perrin received the personal thanks of Gen. Lee, along with a battlefield promotion - but that's another story. As the Federals were just moving off the ridge, a lone Confederate color bearer from Scales' brigade appeared 100 yards in front of them and planted his flag on the now abandoned works at the foot of the ridge, showing there was still some fight left in the Confederates as well.

That evening, Scales' brigade mustered 500 men. The losses of the 13th North Carolina were typical; out of 180 men with guns who entered the fight, only 30 were left at its conclusion. Over the next couple of days, 15 men bearing slight wounds reported for duty, bringing the regiment up to 45 present, led by a handful of officers. But the brigade was destined to suffer two great tragedies in the battle - despite incurring terrific losses on the first day, they were again called upon to take part in the great charge on July 3, where they met a similar fate. Of the 45 men called upon to make that charge from the 13th North Carolina on the third day, over half did not return. So much heartbreak derived from less than an hour's worth of combined intense combat on July 1 and 3.
 
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General Scales would ride in the same wagon as General Pender for the trip back to Virginia. They would separate in Winchester with Scales recuperating there while Pender continued on to Staunton, where he would die when his femoral artery ruptured.

Scales would command his brigade during the Overland Campaign but would take a medical leave from the Army because his wounds from Chancellorsville and Gettysburg had not healed. He would be at his home when Lee surrendered at Appomattox.

Ryan
 
My Confederate ancestor 1st cousin 3 times removed, Pvt. Calier Green Hamilton, Co. H 38th NC was killed that day during the attack on Seminary Ridge. As far as I have been able to find out so far, Calier's body was never recovered and lies some where on the field in an unmarked grave. On my last visit to Gettysburg in 2016 I walked the field that Calier last walked.

@rpkennedy gave an excellent presentation of the attack on Seminary Ridge in 2016 during the September to Remember CWT Reunion.

Respectfully,

William

One Nation
Two countries
Confed-American Flag - Thumbnail.jpg
 
My Confederate ancestor 1st cousin 3 times removed, Pvt. Calier Green Hamilton, Co. H 38th NC was killed that day during the attack on Seminary Ridge. As far as I have been able to find out so far, Calier's body was never recovered and lies some where on the field in an unmarked grave. On my last visit to Gettysburg in 2016 I walked the field that Calier last walked.

@rpkennedy gave an excellent presentation of the attack on Seminary Ridge in 2016 during the September to Remember CWT Reunion.

Respectfully,

William

One Nation
Two countries
View attachment 296094

Thank you for the kind words, my friend.

Ryan
 
I'm sorry this wasn't the right place to discuss Abner Perrin. To me, he's one of the real Confederate heroes of the battle. A braver soldier did not fight that day.

He gets overlooked sometimes because the unit he commanded is always called McGowan's Brigade (it had formerly been Maxey Gregg's) but McGowan was wounded at Chancellorsville and was not with the army.

In recognition of his service, he was promoted to Brigadier and when McGowan returned Perrin was given Cadmus Wilcox's brigade, at the head of which he was mortally wounded at Spotsylvania Courthouse. He died sword in hand leading a savage counterattack at the Mule Shoe.
 
I'm sorry this wasn't the right place to discuss Abner Perrin. To me, he's one of the real Confederate heroes of the battle. A braver soldier did not fight that day.

He gets overlooked sometimes because the unit he commanded is always called McGowan's Brigade (it had formerly been Maxey Gregg's) but McGowan was wounded at Chancellorsville and was not with the army.

In recognition of his service, he was promoted to Brigadier and when McGowan returned Perrin was given Cadmus Wilcox's brigade, at the head of which he was mortally wounded at Spotsylvania Courthouse. He died sword in hand leading a savage counterattack at the Mule Shoe.

I agree. Colonel Perrin's personal presence was a key factor in the success of the attack on Seminary Ridge. His brigade stalled when they got to a fence and it really could have gone either way but when Perrin rode out into a storm of lead from the ridge and called for his men to follow him. They did.

Ryan
 
I agree. Colonel Perrin's personal presence was a key factor in the success of the attack on Seminary Ridge. His brigade stalled when they got to a fence and it really could have gone either way but when Perrin rode out into a storm of lead from the ridge and called for his men to follow him. They did.

Ryan

Then again, I am always amazed that McGowan's (Perrins, briefly) Brigade isn't mentioned prominently when the discussion turns to which outfits were among the best.

It consisted of the 1st, 12th, 13th, 14th SC Volunteer infantry and the 1st SC Rifles (also called Orr's Rifles).

They fought in literally every ANV engagement from Bull Run onwards. They were fierce, hard bitten Confederate loyalists and Yankee haters who were so tough and so defiant that in February 1865 they passed and signed a resolution saying they were committed to the fight, would never surrender and would die with weapons in hand or gain independence for the south.

(I can't find a copy at the moment, but it's quite a document)

These boys were serious fighters with a frightening battlefield record. The fact that Perrin, on that day, was the bravest of the brave speaks volumes.
 
179 of the 232 men in the 13th NC were killed or wounded that day while advancing a mere 125 yards.

The entire brigade was shot to pieces. The fact that they also participated in Pickett's Charge on July 3rd and that a handful made it as far as anyone in the left wing of the attack is a testament to their courage and determination.

Ryan
 
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The entire brigade was shot to pieces. The fact that they also participated in Pickett's Charge on July 3rd and that a handful made it as far as anyone in the left wing of the attack is a testament to their courage and determination.

Ryan

When reading about what some of these soldiers, on both sides, did in that war I'm reminded of the famous line from (R)Adm George Tarrant, standing on the bridge of his aircraft carrier after losing his favorite fighter pilot and SAR helicopter crew to enemy action, watching as two F-9 Panther jets prepare to launch on a combat mission over Korea said, with unconcealed awe:

“Where do we get such men?"
 
Then again, I am always amazed that McGowan's (Perrins, briefly) Brigade isn't mentioned prominently when the discussion turns to which outfits were among the best.

It consisted of the 1st, 12th, 13th, 14th SC Volunteer infantry and the 1st SC Rifles (also called Orr's Rifles).

They fought in literally every ANV engagement from Bull Run onwards. They were fierce, hard bitten Confederate loyalists and Yankee haters who were so tough and so defiant that in February 1865 they passed and signed a resolution saying they were committed to the fight, would never surrender and would die with weapons in hand or gain independence for the south.

(I can't find a copy at the moment, but it's quite a document)

These boys were serious fighters with a frightening battlefield record. The fact that Perrin, on that day, was the bravest of the brave speaks volumes.
It's been posted here: https://civilwartalk.com/threads/the-resolutions-of-mcgowans-brigade.150201/

At least a few other units in the ANV, including the Texas Brigade, passed similar resolutions around the same time. But I agree that McGowan's Brigade truly was among the best in the army. Aside from their actions at Gettysburg, they also fought particularly well at the Railroad Cut at 2nd Manassas and Bloody Angle at Spotsylvania. Lt. James F. J. Caldwell's History of a Brigade of South Carolinians is a good book on the brigade, one of the better postwar unit histories I've read.
 
The entire brigade was shot to pieces. The fact that they also participated in Pickett's Charge on July 3rd and that a handful made it as far as anyone in the left wing of the attack is a testament to their courage and determination.

Ryan
My gg-grandfather was one of those few men in the 13th who made it through the first day unharmed. He was wounded in the attack on the 3rd but (fortunately for me) he survived the war.
 
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Then again, I am always amazed that McGowan's (Perrins, briefly) Brigade isn't mentioned prominently when the discussion turns to which outfits were among the best.

It consisted of the 1st, 12th, 13th, 14th SC Volunteer infantry and the 1st SC Rifles (also called Orr's Rifles).

They fought in literally every ANV engagement from Bull Run onwards. They were fierce, hard bitten Confederate loyalists and Yankee haters who were so tough and so defiant that in February 1865 they passed and signed a resolution saying they were committed to the fight, would never surrender and would die with weapons in hand or gain independence for the south.

(I can't find a copy at the moment, but it's quite a document)

These boys were serious fighters with a frightening battlefield record. The fact that Perrin, on that day, was the bravest of the brave speaks volumes.

My GG--Uncle, James P. Sloan -4th from the left at Co. F, 14th SC Volunteer Infantry Reunion in 1907
14th SC Inf Reunion.jpg
 
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