CHAPTER I. ORGANIZATION OF REGIMENT—CAMP AT READVILLE—DEPARTURE FOR NEW YORK.

AT THE TIME (AUGUST 4TH, 1862) a draft was ordered by President Lincoln for three hundred thousand militia to serve for a period of nine months, Colonel Isaac S. Burrell was in command of the Second Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia—an old militia organization of the State. General Orders No. 25, issued July 1st, 1862, by the Commander-in-Chief of the State troops, Governor John A. Andrew, notified the militia to prepare for a call to service. General Orders No. 34, issued August 13th, 1862, by the same authority, notified the volunteer militia they would be accepted for nine months service.

In common with other organized and uniformed militia organizations in the State, the colonel was instructed by officers and men of his command to tender the regiment as volunteers for nine months service, and to obtain permission to recruit up to the requisite strength. Public opinion was opposed to a draft at that time, and Governor Andrew, by accepting the services of such militia bodies as volunteered, affording every facility in his power to enable them to recruit up to the full maximum of strength, avoided the necessity for a draft, made available the services of those officers who eventually recruited their companies to a war strength, and the rank and file already enlisted in the militia—a very fine nucleus to commence with. The intermixing of raw recruits with men of some experience of the duties of a soldier tended to greatly facilitate the mobilization of the States’ quota, and hastened the departure of regiments to the field in a tolerable good condition for immediate duty.

The Second Regiment, M. V. M., was one of the regiments accepted. As there was already a Second Regiment (three years troops) in the field, orders were issued designating the regiment as the Forty-Second Regiment, M. V. M., and was ordered into a camp of instruction at Readville, August 26th, 1862.

The old Second Regiment, M. V. M., a part of the First Brigade, First Division, State Militia, had just completed the five days camp duty with the brigade at Medford, required by law, from August 13th to 18th, and the regimental guard, Company C, Captain Leonard, left at Medford in charge of the camp equipage, since that encampment ended, in anticipation that the regiment would be immediately ordered back, was ordered August 22d to strike camp, proceed to Readville early next day, and pitch tents upon high ground very near to the Boston & Providence Railroad track. The camp was laid out by Quartermaster Burrell and Adjutant Davis, assisted by men of Company C. Colonel Burrell assumed command of all troops rendezvousing there until Brigadier-General Peirce was placed in command.

In addition to this guard, the first detachment of about one hundred men, occupied this camp on the afternoon of August 26th, and from that time until the regiment was complete (November 11th), recruiting, equipping, and instruction occupied the time. The Ninth Battery, Captain De Vecchi (enlisting for three years), Eleventh Battery, Captain Jones, Forty-Third Regiment, Colonel Holbrook, Forty-Fourth Regiment, Colonel Lee, and the Forty-Fifth Regiment, Colonel Codman (all enlisting for nine months), were encamped in tents and barracks at the same place and at the same time. The whole force formed a post, commanded by Brigadier-General R. A. Peirce, of the State Militia.

The officers of the old Second Regiment, M. V. M., that went into camp with the intention of entering the service, if successful in recruiting men to complete their companies and the Forty-Second Regiment, were:—

Colonel—I. S. Burrell.

Lieutenant-Colonel—T. L. D. Perkins.

Major—George W. Beach.

Adjutant—Charles A. Davis.

Quartermaster—C. B. Burrell, vice James W. Coverly, resigned.

Surgeon—John A. Lamson, resigned August 28th, 1862.

Company A—Captain, Wm. A. Brabine; Lieutenants, Wm. Kilner and John H. Stevens.

Company B—Captain, Albert H. Townsend; Lieutenants, Artemas Webster and Wm. B. Rand.

Company C—Captain, O. W. Leonard; Lieutenants, I. B. White and Geo. H. Drew.

Company D—Captain, George Sherivé; Lieutenants, Wm. H. Cowdin and D. F. Eddy.

Company E—Captain, Samuel C. Davis; Lieutenants, David Hale and Henry Pierce.

Company F—Captain, Wm. H. Russ; Lieutenants, Wm. A. Clark and James C. Singleton.

Company G—Captain, A. N. Proctor; Lieutenants, A. E. Proctor and Charles Jarvis.

Considerable time elapsed before the regiment was full. The system adopted by the Governor, of assigning quotas to cities and towns, was found to work to the disadvantage of the seven original companies comprising the regiment in gaining recruits, as such quotas preferred to enlist in a regiment, as a body, under officers of their own choice, whenever the quotas were sufficient to form a company, or companies. It became evident, early in September, that the Forty-Second Regiment could not be filled to ten full companies unless some of the original companies gave way to such city or town companies as could be secured. Colonel Burrell, with his officers and their friends, spent time and money, visiting various cities and towns endeavoring to have them join the Forty-Second.

There being a vacancy of three companies in the regiment, Colonel Burrell, although having offers of five full companies to join at one time, thought he could conscientiously accept of only three, viz., one from Weymouth, one from Medway, and one from Dorchester, preferring to let the other two join some other regiment, and to wait a short time longer, in hope that officers recruiting for the original seven companies would have full commands in a short time, although recruiting was very, very dull at the time for four of those companies. When two of the old companies, D and G, were full to the maximum, and the third, Company C, was progressing favorably, it was evident Companies A, B, E and F could not be recruited, and were delaying formation of the regiment.

Company H, recruited by Captain Bailey, was about full. This company was not in the old Second Regiment. Bailey had some sort of authority to recruit a company, and expressed a desire to become a part of the Forty-Second. He made his headquarters at Readville, and sent men into camp often. There was a great deal of bounty jumping in this company before it was mustered in. The keeping of a correct list of men sent to camp by the captain was a tough job, as the adjutant and sergeant-major well remember. What blunders were made, or obstacles met and overcome by Captain Bailey, no one can tell, for the captain kept his own counsel.

In Company B, Captain Townsend was very troublesome. In September he carried his supposed grievances so far as to remain away from camp, and order his men to keep away also. This culminated on the eighteenth, when Colonel Burrell requested the adjutant-general to discharge him; also recommended that Companies B and C be consolidated, and that Company C be the nucleus and letter of the new company. Orders were issued by the Governor disbanding A, B, E and F, transferring the men to other companies. The Weymouth company was designated Company A; Medway company, Company B; Dorchester company, Company I; and steps were taken to try and secure town quotas to fill the three companies required to complete the regiment.

During October the Governor decided to consolidate certain regiments, in order to remedy an apparent evil, and get the troops into the field as soon as possible. More regiments were being recruited in the State than could be filled by the State quota of nine months volunteers. The Forty-Second and Fifty-Fourth regiments had the smallest number of men mustered into service; the Forty-Second having seven companies, the Fifty-Fourth, six companies. Three companies from Worcester County, viz., from Leicester, Captain Cogswell, Worcester, Captain Stiles, Ware, Captain Davis, of the Fifty-Fourth, were transferred to the Forty-Second regiment. One company of the Fifty-Fourth was transferred to the Fiftieth Regiment, two companies of the Fifty-Fourth to the Fifty-First Regiment, and the Fifty-Fourth Regiment was disbanded.

All through the attempt to recruit the regiment to its maximum strength, Lieutenant-Colonel Perkins and Major Beach, instead of rendering any valuable service in that direction, were hampering the efforts of others. A jealousy sprang up in the breasts of these two officers against the colonel, born from what no one seems to know, and it is doubtful if they knew themselves. This jealous feeling was intensified when Companies A, B, E and F were disbanded, opening the way for three new companies from city and town quotas to take their places. With only three companies remaining of the old Second Regiment, a triangular fight sprang up for the positions of colonel, lieutenant-colonel and major; elective in all nine months troops from Massachusetts, line officers casting the ballots. Officers of the three Worcester County companies held the balance of power. They were desirous of obtaining for field officers the best men they could find in the regiment. A council was held one evening, seated in a circle upon the grass some distance from quarters, where the matter was fully discussed. It was finally decided to vote for Isaac S. Burrell for colonel, as he was well known to most of them as an old militia officer; for Captain Stedman, Company B, to be lieutenant-colonel, as he had been highly...