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George Washington Flowers 
 Memorial Collection 
 
 DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 
 ESTABLISHED BY THE 
 FAMILY OF 
 
 COLONEL FLOWERS 
 
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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
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JOHN HENRY CAM MACK- 1 843- 1920 
 
Personal Recollections 
 
 OF 
 
 Private John Henry Cammack 
 
 A Soldier of the Confederacy 
 1861-1865 
 
 Written at the urgent request of his family and friends, 
 during the last years of his life, and published that 
 the story may be read by those who knew and 
 honored him. 
 
 To which is added press notices and other papers con- 
 taining final tribute to his memory. 
 
 PARAGON PTS. S PUB. CO., HUNTIN6T0N, W. »A. 
 
So live that when thy summons comes to join 
 The innumerable caravan, that moves, 
 To that mysterious realm, where each shall take 
 His chamber in the silent halls of death, 
 Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night, 
 Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed 
 By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, 
 Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch 
 About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. 
 
 — Bryant. 
 
KtSK 
 
 INTRODUCTORY 
 
 The task of gathering up the scattered threads of 
 John Henry Cammack's war experiences has been as 
 arduous as it was pleasant. 
 
 All through the years of his middle life, when 
 friends would be present, particularly old comrades, 
 stories of the war were one of the great means of en- 
 tertainment. To his family certain of these stories 
 grew very dear. They were told and retold. His large 
 fund of innate humor threw around the whole of the 
 bitter war story a sort of glamour which took away the 
 harshness of the actual incidents and at times made the 
 whole thrilling experience seem to the children who 
 heard the stories to be only a matter of holiday sport. 
 
 It was this fine sense of humor that stayed with him 
 to his last day; which smoothed over the rough places, 
 and lent radiance to the war stories that were told in 
 the family circle. 
 
 Ten years ago members of the family and friends 
 began urging him to write out his personal story of 
 the war. He demurred because he thought it would 
 seem egotistic, then he claimed that he was a poor 
 writer, that the events had happened so long ago that 
 he could not recall them and that nobody would be 
 interested in the affair anyway. But, after repeated 
 urging, he began making his notations. 
 
 These were written under widely varied circum- 
 stances and it is a great wonder that there is any 
 coherence to the narrative. Some notes were prepared 
 
on the front porch at home, some on trains, some at 
 hotels in Florida, others on long trips, others at the 
 office. Despite this wide variety the story as told is 
 regular, consistent, coherent, chronological and lacks 
 very little in giving exact dates and names, although 
 most of the writing was done nearly a half century 
 after the events transpired. 
 
 It had been the firm intent of members of the 
 family to get hold of these notes and publish them in 
 pamphlet form while the writer was still living, but 
 the long severe illness which culminated in his death 
 May 6th, rendered this impossible. 
 
 It is a plain and simple and straight-forward story 
 of the Civil war from the standpoint of a private soldier. 
 It has an intense personal interest from this very fact. 
 The majority of histories are written from the view- 
 point of the General, while this is the story of the fight- 
 ing man from beginning to end, inspired only by loyalty 
 to his State and a firm conviction that he was fighting 
 for principle. 
 
 No apology is given for the publication, because 
 it is intended as a simple monument that will endure 
 as long as a shaft of granite. It will circulate, naturally, 
 only among the members of the family and those com- 
 rades and friends who loved the man who wrote. 
 
 — His Sons. 
 
MY EXPERIENCES IN THE CIVIL WAR 
 
 Though a mere boy I was an active participant in 
 the stirring scenes of 1861 to 1865. 
 
 Naturally in the years before the war and as my 
 family grew up the tales of the war were told and re- 
 told. Friends and comrades would sit around the fire 
 side and we would fight again the battles of the Civil 
 War and the most of the instances became a part of 
 our family history. I was repeatedly urged to make 
 notations of my experiences during the war so that my 
 children and grand children might have them in a more 
 permanent form than mere memory. 
 
 I am not a writer and never had many advantages 
 of the schools, but, after repeated solicitation, and hav- 
 ing retired somewhat from active business, I have de- 
 cided to set down in order, purely from memory, my 
 part in the Civil War. 
 
 I have read many histories of the war. They cover 
 a wide scope and go deeply into the philosophy of 
 human events, but have been written mostly from the 
 standpoint of the General who directed or of the his- 
 torian who collected facts and arranged them for public 
 use. 
 
 As to the cause of the war, I have little to say. I 
 was a Virginian as were my people, and when my state 
 went to war, I saw no other course open but to follow 
 the fortunes of the old Dominion. After fifty years 
 
6 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 and a full survey of the events that have transpired 
 I am led to believe that if the alternative were presented 
 again, I should perhaps take the same course. 
 
 Ancestors 
 
 My father John C. Cammack was born December 
 23, 1814, in Spottsylvania County, Virginia. His 
 father William Cammack was a Scotchman but was bom 
 in America of Scottish parentage. His mother Cather- 
 ine Cammack, was of English decent, a Miss Overton. 
 Her father had kept what was known as the "Yellow 
 Tavern" near Richmond, Virginia. It was at this point 
 that General J. E. B. Stuart was killed in the latter part 
 of the Civil War. 
 
 My mother Margaret A. Cammack was the daugh- 
 ter of Robert Gibbs, she was born at Winchester, Vir- 
 ginia, December 17, 1820. Her father was from Done- 
 gal, Ireland. 
 
 My Grandfather Gibbs was educated at the Uni- 
 versity of Edinburg but when 22 years of age, came to 
 this country and went into business in Philadelphia, 
 soon after marrying my grandmother. 
 
 I was born on a farm near the town of Dayton in 
 Rockingham County, Virginia, December 22, 1843. 
 There were eight sons and two daughters in the family, 
 two of the boys died in infancy. At the time these 
 memoirs were begun, the rest of the children were liv- 
 ing except my brother Lucius, who was mortally wound- 
 ed August 9, 1862, in the battle of Cedar Mountain. 
 Since that time my brother Algernon, who was for many 
 years a great sufferer, has died. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 
 
 We Were Farmers 
 
 My father was a farmer, then a stage driver and 
 later an agent of a large Stage Line purchasing supplies 
 for the company. In 1859 it seems that he had bought 
 supplies for the company and they were charged to him. 
 The company failed anc^ he had to pay as far as he 
 was able. In the late fall of that year, we set out from 
 Amherst County, Virginia, and moved to Harrison 
 County, and went to farming again. 
 
 Rumblings of War 
 
 About the middle of the year 1860, the rumblings 
 of the CIVIL WAR began to be heard. Almost all the 
 country people were readers of the newspapers and they 
 were right plentifully scattered among the people all 
 over the County. In the stores, post offices, blacksmith 
 shops, shoe shops and wherever men and boys would 
 congregate to hear the news and discuss questions at 
 issue they were found. In the community, where I 
 lived Union and Non-LTnion sentiment was nearly equal- 
 ly divided. At every school house there were debating 
 societies formed, these societies taking up nearly all the 
 live issues of the day. Sometimes these meetings and 
 discussions made angry blood and often it was that boys 
 and sometimes men, were engaged in disputes and even 
 fights. 
 
 Excitement ran very high all over our part of the 
 state in the fall of 1860, when there were three tickets 
 in the field for President — the Republicans with Mr. 
 Lincoln for President. In Virginia only a few people 
 
PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 could by any stretch of the imagination be expected 
 to vote for Mr. Lincoln. 
 
 I remember after the election, when it was said, 
 that two men down about Lumberport, voted for Lin- 
 coln. There was a great surprise expressed that any 
 man on the soil of Virginia would dare vote the Black 
 Republican Ticket. 
 
 A Personal Encounter 
 
 On the day of the election I went down to the 
 village about sunset, a little curious to see the crowd 
 and hear the noises. I was there but a short time, had 
 purchased a half gallon, open can of tar. Soon after 
 leaving the village I was overtaken by about twelve 
 young men of the neighborhood above me and I 
 thought they all appeared to be under the influence of 
 drink. They were headed by a young man by the name 
 of Ratcliffe, who was riding a very fine mare. He rode 
 up along side me and almost at once proposed to trade 
 horses. I was riding a very good horse, but a farm 
 horse and not near so valuable as his. I told him I 
 did not wish to trade but, he insisted on me making a 
 statement, finally I told him I would trade even. This 
 angered him greatly and he swore if I did not go back — 
 if I continued on that road a quarter of a mile he would 
 kill me. He then went on and joined his companions. 
 
 I confess that I was afraid of coming to harm if 
 I followed that road home, but I knew of no other way 
 home, so I risked it. A short distance from there I 
 found them in line across the road. I rode over a low 
 bank and got in a pig path down by the fence and 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 
 
 attempted to pass their line, which was formed en- 
 tirely across the roadway. Seeing what I was trying 
 to do, Ratcliffe spurred his mare down the bank and 
 caught my horse's bridle, swearing that he would kill 
 me now. I thought he was arranging to usQ a knife 
 on me and I drew back the can of tar, all the weapon 
 I had, and was about to strike him in the face with it, 
 when to my surprise one of the young men spurred 
 out of the crowd and rushing down, broke Ratcliffe 
 loose from my bridle and took me by the arm, rode 
 with me out into the road in front of the crowd. "Now" 
 said he, "I have witnessed your actions towards this 
 young man, we can whip all of you together" I have 
 always felt very grateful to that young man for rescu- 
 ing me. I have also, always been glad the crowd did not 
 insist on seeing if we two could whip them all. I was 
 doubtful about it then and have been so since, although 
 I've been told, my friend was a champion fighter. 
 
 The more I thought about it, the more angry I 
 felt at Ratcliffe and so I persuaded father, about a 
 week after that, to let me go up to Ratcliffe 's tannery 
 to buy some leather. After buying the leather and 
 seeing that the fellow did not recognize me, I invited 
 him to walk down the road with me. He seemed sur- 
 prised, but came with me. When we had gotten out 
 of sight of the house I hitched my horse and told him 
 I intended to give him a big thrashing. Then I told him 
 why. If I had been looking for an apology and writing 
 it up for him, I couldn't have made it any more lowly 
 than he did. 
 
 The fact is he had been drunk on election day. 
 
10 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Inflammatory Speeches 
 
 Excitement ran riot, not only in our own com- 
 munity, but throughout all Virginia and in the South. 
 
 The public men of both sections were heard and 
 their speeches read with eagerness. There were giants 
 in Congress at that time and everyone of them had his 
 quiver full of speeches, many of them so full of angry 
 and reckless charges and wild and unbrotherly threats 
 that the people generally were much more excited and 
 angry after 1861 came in than they had been before. 
 
 There were a great many men on both sides of 
 Mason and Dixons line not then in Congress, who were 
 gifted with the power to move the people with fiery 
 speech and a large number of the^, instead of trying 
 to allay the excitement of the crowds that gathered to 
 hear them, seemed determined to increase their lack of 
 self control. 
 
 One of our neighbors Avas a man by the name of 
 Abraham Smith. He was at that time seventy years 
 old, a strong Southerner from the valley of Virginia, 
 a man of ungovernable temper, and it is needless to say 
 a strong partisan. This man had two sets of children, 
 six boys and a girl composed the last set. The girl 
 was regarded as a great beauty and had graduated in 
 one of the best colleges in Virginia. She married Dr. 
 Mat Blair, who was afterwards Surgeon of the 20th 
 Virginia Cavalry. Their marriage was not a happy one, 
 owing largely to the fact tliat Blair was a very dissi- 
 pated man. Kate, his wife, died soon after the war. 
 
 I have mentioned Mr. Smith here because it was 
 largely through him that I liad access to the papers of 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 11 
 
 that time, and the discussion had at his house almost 
 daily filled me with interest and enthusiasm. 
 
 I was sixteen years old in December of that year, 
 two of the Smith boys, John and Dan, were older than 
 I. Ed was about my age, Dan and I were almost in- 
 seperable. 
 
 John S. Carlisle, a member of Congress, who lived 
 in Clarksburg, was a really strong man, a fine speaker 
 and a politican. He was known to be a staunch Union 
 man. He was elected to the Virginia convention, some- 
 times called the "Secession Convention". The North 
 Western part of the State sent a large majority of men 
 to that Convention who were largely in favor of re- 
 maining in the Union. I say largelj^ in favor of re- 
 maining in the Union, I mean by that, that at this time 
 scarcely two men out of a dozen were in favor of leav- 
 ing the Union. 
 
 There were some notable cases of vain talk. A 
 certain magistrate, who was a rich farmer and a fine 
 looking fellow seemed very anxious for a fight. He 
 wanted "War ! War ! Red War ! Afterwards when a 
 very fine opportunity came for him to occupy himself 
 as a soldier, he refused and went away over into the 
 mountains and never fired a shot during the war. 
 
 Oil Excitement 
 
 About January 1st, 1861 there was great excite- 
 ment about oil being found at Burning Springs, in 
 Wirt County. My brother Lucius S. Cammack soon 
 went to that place and entered into a Company made 
 up of men from our neighborhood, to bore for oil. My 
 
12 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 brother was employed as "Augerman". I might re- 
 mark here that this well when oil was actually found, 
 in the middle of this same year, was next to the largest 
 well ever struck at that place, yielding many hundreds 
 of barrels per day, but Alas and Alack! only a few of 
 the original owners ever received a penny for the out- 
 put of oil. It happened that nearly all the owners came 
 back and went to the Southern Army, as my brother 
 did, and a very unscrupulous fellow, by buUdosing and 
 deceiving most of the people who owned the stock bought 
 the stock and run the well for himself, out of which he 
 was said to have made a great many thousands of dol- 
 lars. My father, during most of the war, kept up the 
 assessments which he made with great regularity, 
 although the well was said to be yielding a vast amount 
 of oil. In the last part of 1864 the owner demanded 
 of my father to pay him an assessment of $525.00 under 
 pain of the property being confiscated. Not being able 
 to paj' the money, he finally agreed with the man to 
 sell the interest my brother had owned for $125.00, the 
 amount, I believe, being paid in the shape of a horse. 
 This man during the war that was coming on then, got 
 a great reputation for himself for loyalty, he being 
 Captain of the Home Guards of that part of the country. 
 The excitement over the situation in the different 
 states in the South and in tlie North as well, was of the 
 sort that has never been equalled in this country. In 
 the border states especially, Maryland, Virginia and 
 Kentucky, much bitterness prevailed. Very often it was 
 that father and sons of the same family differed in 
 political opinions to the extent sometimes of making 
 
i 
 
 PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 13 
 
 bitter enemies of those who were a little while ago of 
 one family and one blood. 
 
 The "Dred Scott Decision"" "States Rights" "Se- 
 cession" filled the newspapers every day and every 
 week. Argument and discussion of these and kindred 
 questions took up nearly all the time of the people, and 
 this condition of things was common to every neighbor- 
 hood and to all classes of citizens. 
 
 These discussions were not always in a friendly 
 spirit. I remember that two men in the village near 
 where I lived, were having an argument as to slavery. 
 Mr. Monroe favored slavery and the other did not, in 
 the heat of argument the other called Monroe a liar. 
 They were both large men, but Monroe seemed the 
 strongest and was very angry, he rushed up to his 
 antagonist and grasped him by the chin whiskers and 
 the nose, opened the mans mouth and spit down his 
 throat. 
 
 Not far from May 1st, Governor Letcher, sent Col. 
 Porterfield to occupy Grafton. This being the end of 
 a railroad division and having a large number of men 
 in the shops as well, Porterfield found himself unable 
 to hold his position owing to the great number against 
 him. 
 
 Meeting to Decide 
 
 It happened that about this time we held a meet- 
 ing of Southern people at Romine's Mill to decide 
 whether we would volunteer and offer our ser\aces to 
 the government. 
 
14 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Although the Virginia Convention had passed the 
 ordinance of secession it had not as yet been voted on 
 by all the people. 
 
 A beautiful day dawned on us as we gathered on 
 the green at the school house at Romines Mills. John 
 Hoffman, a lawyer, and afterwards a Brigadier General 
 in our army, was there and made us a speech. He read 
 several extracts from Horace Greeley's paper, which was 
 not calculated to mollify us very much. We also had 
 two or three drums and fifes. Several enthusiastic war 
 speeches were made, interspersed with the inspiring 
 drum. During one of these musical moments a young 
 lady came riding by on a very spirited horse. The 
 animal seemed not used to such music and pranced and 
 plunged very much and had not the young lady been 
 en excellent rider, she would certainly have been thrown 
 from the horse. Finally she dismounted, about the time 
 the musicians became aware of the mischief they were 
 doing. This young lady was Miss M. J. Fox, I did 
 not know her at that time, but I met her once in 1863 
 while on a scout in West Virginia and we were married 
 in October, 1866. 
 
 I must put down one thing that Col. Hoffman said 
 that day: "Gentlemen, I am a volunteer. I am going 
 with you. The trouble with me is that I am afraid I 
 can't fight. I'm afraid I will run. I hope you will 
 help me along and overlook my faults". As a matter 
 of fact if John Hoffman was not the bravest, he was 
 about the bravest man I ever saw. 
 
 My brother L. S. Cammack and I volunteered that 
 day in the service of Virginia. We expected to be or- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 15 
 
 "ganized iu a company with Maj. Armsby, as our Cap- 
 tain. Maj. Armsby was a neighbor, right popular in 
 the neighborhood, and knew something of military 
 affairs. 
 
 When we went home that evening and reported that 
 we had volunteered, father and mother were greatly 
 worried, especially about my going, only sixteen years 
 and four months old. Well, they thought it over and 
 finally mother said she would rather we went both to- 
 gether than one alone, so finally to my great joy it was 
 understood that when the company marched away, I 
 would be with them. 
 
 Three days later on the 18th of May, a horseman 
 came rushing up the pike from Clarksburg and reported 
 that an order had come from Col. Porterfield at Grafton 
 for all the reinforcements that could be had — that the 
 enemy were about to destroy his small force. 
 
 Another messenger had been sent to West Milford, 
 where we had some men. There was not time to or- 
 ganize another company and we went down to Clarks- 
 burg that evening with 18 men and boys and met the 
 Milford Contingent and went into the Clarksburg Com- 
 pany under the command of Capt. U. M. Turner, W. P. 
 Cooper, First Lieut., Noval Lewis Second Lieut. Maj. 
 Armsby, was afterwards made a Lieut, in our Companj' 
 at Philippi. 
 
 Enlisted at Clarksburg 
 
 We were quartered and there during the night. I 
 was at the home of Judge Lee. There were two com- 
 
16 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 panies of Union men and one company of Confederates 
 in Clarksburg. 
 
 The next morning the Clarksburg men under Capt. 
 Turner paraded in front of the principal hotel prepara- 
 tory to marching to Grafton. 
 
 One of the most remarkable things that I have 
 ever known of occured there. The Union Companies 
 came around, most of them willing to talk and such 
 expressions as these could be heard: "Well Tom, you're 
 going South I see. Well, goodbye, I guess the next time 
 I see you will be in battle." "So long, you'll catch the 
 devil when we do get to fighting, alright, all right." 
 Neither side kept their guns the night before. By agree- 
 ment the arms were locked up in the county jail. 
 
 Many of the men shook hands with their foes and 
 sometimes there were kindly expressions of good bye. 
 
 Fifty years is a long period of time, looking back 
 across the intervening years. I think there are only 
 a few of the people that I knew then that are alive now, 
 of the few that are, I know the whereabouts of only 
 one here and there. Of the nearly one hundred, who 
 left Clarksburg with us that morning in the long ago. 
 there is but about a dozen of them on the earth today. 
 Some were killed in battle, some died of wounds, some 
 of sickness incident to camp life and of those who 
 escaped the war, some have fallen all along the wayside 
 and few yet remain. The Lord has been very gracious 
 to me. I am in reasonably good health and have been 
 successful enough in business to gather about me most 
 of the comforts and necessities of life. 
 
 The Company marched down the street to the home 
 of the Hon. Beverly Lurty, who came to his veranda 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 17 
 
 and made a very encouraging- speech, bidding us God 
 Speed. 
 
 We then went on to Bridgeport and there listened 
 to a fine speech of Mr. Johnston a venerable ex-governor 
 of Virginia. Several miles below Bridgeport, one of 
 our scouts came back and reported the enemy close in 
 front. There was great excitement. Some of the men 
 did not even have guns. One of the men from Milford 
 got a small fence stake, saying that this was good enough 
 to fight with. It is hardly necessary to say that there 
 was no enemy at this time, but that some body got 
 scared and imagined he saw one. 
 
 Early Losses 
 
 It was at this point that we lost two of our most 
 war-like members in the persons of two big politicians 
 who were well mounted and had been aching for a fight 
 all day. When they thought the fight was imminent they 
 suddenly remembered that they had important engage- 
 ments back in Clarksburg, and they spurred their horses 
 in that direction. I never saw either of them again 
 until after the war. 
 
 We halted late that evening at Fetterman, 
 where we remained several days and were reinforced by 
 Capt. Thompson's company, known as the Marion 
 Guards, 
 
 I do not remember the date of the state election 
 on the matter of secession, but it occurred near this time. 
 Secession carried from one extreme of the state to the 
 other and preparations for war went on. 
 
18 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 A Warm Reception 
 
 One afternoon Col. Porterfield marshalled his little 
 army and moved into Grafton. We had about 250 in 
 line. As we were moving into the west end of town we 
 heard a tremendous noise of shouting which we thought 
 was joy at our coming. It was not. Nearly the whole 
 population was out on the streets, but they were not 
 cheering. They were shouting and cursing and abusing 
 us dreadfully. There were about 30 men on horse- 
 back, who followed immediately behind the infantry as 
 we entered the town. My father road at the liead of 
 this company of horsemen. When a short way in the 
 town, some men ran immediately in front of the horse- 
 men, carrying a very long United States Flag. They 
 stretched it entirely across the street. The flag was 
 held so that it was nearly five feet high. My father 
 spurred his horse forward and jumped the flag. One 
 hind foot of the horse caught as he jumped and one of 
 the men let go of the flag. At the same moment a man 
 on the top of the house threw a chair at my father, but 
 missed him and struck the son of the ex-Governor on 
 the head. It hurt him very badly, but not a shot was 
 fired and no other harm done at that time. 
 
 First Man Killed 
 
 We were held for about an hour on the platform 
 of the old railroad hotel and it seemed to me we had 
 an officer for about every six men and all of them beg- 
 ging the men not to shoot. Practically the whole town 
 was out in the street above us cursing and calling us 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 19 
 
 Ugly names. I think that was about the longest hour 
 I ever spent. 
 
 Late in the evening we marched back to Fetterman. 
 About nine o'clock that night our sentry was approach- 
 ed by two men Wilson and Brown, coming along the 
 railroad track. When within about sixty feet the sentry, 
 Knight, ordered them to halt. For an answer one of 
 the men fired a pistol, the bullet hitting Knight in the 
 cheek. He immediately raised his rifle and fired, strik- 
 ing Wilson in the breast, from which wound he died 
 in less than an hour. There was a great deal of com- 
 motion, especially, when it was known that the man 
 who was killed was intoxicated and had sworn when 
 he left Grafton, that he would have some Rebel blood 
 that night or go to hell. I guess he went. 
 
 A large number of Grafton men organized and 
 came down on the opposite side of the river about two 
 o'clock, intending to cross the bridge there and attack 
 the garrison. I was one of the men on guard duty at 
 the bridge. They came close, but they reflected and did 
 not attack. 
 
 Things Begin to Happen 
 
 History began to make very rapidly after this. In 
 two days we went to Grafton and occupied it. We 
 had now nearly five hundred men. Someone arranged 
 to reduce our number, by poisoning our bread at the 
 bakery, but fortunately it was found out in time to 
 save ourselves. 
 
 About this time Gen. McClellan came down the 
 railroad from Parkersburg with about 3,500 men. We 
 
20 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 felt impelled to go away from Grafton, so we fell back 
 on Philippi which was eighteen miles away. As we 
 crossed the bridge, leaving Grafton in a hurry it must be 
 confessed, the citizens came out and greeted us with 
 such cheering messages as these. "Hello, fellows, why 
 do you go off in such a hurry ? " " Stay a while longer. ' " 
 "General McClellan won't do a thing but capture you 
 and put you in jail." We arrived at Philippi late in 
 the evening. Here our company was quartered in the 
 courthouse. We were re-inforced by three or four 
 hundred men. I was mustered into the service at 
 Philippi and learned afterwards that my age was put 
 down as 21. The officer putting it that way instead of 
 17, my real age, thinking that I would not get in if 
 my real age were known. 
 
 A Brave Talker 
 
 While at Philippi, Capt. Stofer, a lawyer from up 
 in Pocahontas, favored us with his presence. He was 
 a broad, heavy-set man and quite fond of making 
 speeches. He had a peculiar voice and a supreme con- 
 fidence in whipping any force that could be brought 
 against us. One evening being called upon for a speech, 
 he mounted a store box and among other things de- 
 clared : ' ' Gentlemen, I could take a peach tree switch 
 and whip all of Lincoln's 75,000 Yankees if they invade 
 Virginia." I might say here that the Capt. was no\ 
 cut out for a military man. He was a little later cap- 
 tured and then released, and then went back to the 
 quiet of his home, and left his soldiering to the rest 
 of us. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 21 
 
 McClellan Attacks Us 
 
 Gen McClellan sent up a strong force, about 3,000 
 men, the first of June, dividing it into three columns. 
 One was to attack us in front, one crossed the river 
 some distance below to attack us in the flank, and the 
 other to cross the river above us and form in the road 
 and in the timber in our rear. It seems to me that if 
 Col. Porterfield had set out to help McClellan he could 
 not have done it any more successfully than he did. 
 
 Early Sunday morning we were ordered to move. 
 We were all ready before sunrise. Then he counter- 
 manded the order and we were told to drop out of ranks 
 and await orders. This we did, having scarcely any- 
 thing to eat all day. That night he ordered all the 
 pickets in at nine o'clock. There was a very heavy 
 rainfall that night, but the enemy, in spite of this, 
 marched from Grafton and at day light opened his 
 artillery within 300 yards of our camp. Of course 
 there was nothing left for us to do bufi to get out of 
 town quickly. We would all have been captured that 
 day were it not for the fact that the flanking columns 
 missed their way and the attack on our flank and rear 
 was not made. 
 
 Some few years ago, some over enthusiastic citizens 
 of Philippi decided that they would stage a big celebra- 
 tion of this first battle at Philippi and they sent me a 
 beautifully engraved invitation to be present. I like 
 a celebration as well as anybody, but as I reviewed the 
 events which transpired when I met, or almost met. Gen. 
 McClellan at Philippi and when I went away from 
 Philippi in something of a hurry, leaving a nicely cooked 
 
22 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 breakfast for some Yankee to eat, I was unable to think 
 of any reason why I should go back to Philippi and 
 celebrate, so I did not go. 
 
 We fell back to Beverly, thirty miles. I do not 
 remember seeing Col. Porterfield after that day. I 
 heard that he was court martialed and dismissed from 
 the service. 
 
 A Lawyer Leaves Us 
 
 When the company got into line the morning of 
 the attack at Philippi, George Lurty, a lawyer, was with 
 us, being placed on the left of the company, where the 
 short men were usually placed. George heard the order 
 for Company C to cover the retreat. He had other 
 plans. He took a sneak immediately in the direction of 
 Beverly. Instead of covering the retreat, he broke for 
 the rear, first throwing his gun over the fence. A 
 passing Cavalryman gave him a lift after persistent 
 requests to do so, but the saddle turned and they both 
 fell off. Lurty was in so much of a hurry that he did 
 not want to be bothered with a horse and he ran on. 
 The cavalryman yelled for him to stop while he fastened 
 the saddle on, but George would not stop. He climbed 
 into a wagon driven by a countryman and told him for 
 heaven's sake to whip up, that there were 17,000 Yankees 
 right behind him. George reached Beverly six hours 
 before the rest of us did and we really did not linger 
 on the road any longer than was necessary. 
 
 Incidents at Beverly 
 
 At Beverly we went to an old Tavern and waited 
 our turn at the supper table. We were all beastly hun- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 23 
 
 gry. I remember we stood behind the chairs, waiting 
 for the men who were eating to get up. 
 
 The next morning, early, an alarm was sounded, 
 and everybody turned out into the streets, including 
 the women and children. There was a tall young man, 
 by the name of Armstrong, from Clarksburg, with us. 
 He was out at the barn. When the alarm was sounded, 
 he came bounding up through the garden. There was 
 a fence and a stile, but Mr. Armstrong did not pay 
 attention to either. He cleared the sMle at a jump. 
 This was because he was excited. The enemy did not 
 come and so we waited until nine o'clock that night, 
 when we were ordered to fall back to Huttonsville, eleven 
 miles. The mud was awfully deep and every little while 
 we had to get down into the mud and lift the wagons 
 out of a hole. About three o'clock in the morning, my 
 brother and I turned aside into a barn, almost tired to 
 death, covered with mud, and lay down on the barn 
 floor, and slept until morning. A boy came into the 
 barn yelling that the Yankees were coming, but we were 
 so tired that we were almost willing to let them come. 
 We went to a farm house where they furnished us with 
 buck wheat cakes and we had a great breakfast. 
 
 At Huttonsville we were joined by several new 
 companies, among them Shoemaker's battery of artillery. 
 It was here that Gen. Garnett joined us and took com- 
 mand. 
 
 Major Chenowith 
 
 While at Huttonsville I got very well acquainted 
 with a splendid and dashing young officer. Major Cheno- 
 
24 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 with, who was on Gen. Garnett's staff. He spent some 
 time testing- out the new recruits. I met him at close 
 range one night when I was on picket duty. The Major 
 was making the rounds of the guards. He came to me 
 and entering into conversation, became exceedingly 
 friendly. At last in a familiar way he asked me to 
 let him handle my gun. This I refused, whereupon he 
 went away, apparently very angry. He did get hold 
 of the gun of two or more of the pickets while he stayed 
 there, and they got into serious trouble about it. 
 
 I was on guard with a number of men at the bridge 
 one night, when some horsemen rode up and Chenowith 
 seemed to be in command. He said he wanted to cross 
 the bridge but had no written orders from the General. 
 I refused to let them pass. He swore he would cross 
 the river just above the bridge. I told him if he did 
 I would fire upon him. He then demanded that the 
 Officer of the Guard, Lieut. Galvin, be called. This 
 was done but Galvin would not let him pass and they 
 both grew angry. Finally the Major had to withdraw. 
 Major Chenowith was a gallant soldier and was killed 
 at the battle of Port Republic in 1862. 
 
 Laurel Hill 
 
 General Garnett ordered a forward movement to 
 Laurel Hill, which was just across the mountain from 
 what is now the town of Elkins. We had been joined 
 by the 23rd Virginia Infantry and by the first Georgia 
 Infantry. 
 
 The first Georgia Infantry was made up largely of 
 rich men's sons. They came richly dressed and some of 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 25 
 
 the boys were attended by two body servants, valet and 
 cook. Some of the fellows got dreadfully homesick. It 
 was here that one of them having a sharp hatchet in his 
 hand was so homesick that he deliberately cut off three 
 of his toes and otherwise mangled his foot, and being 
 wounded and useless as a soldier was sent back home. 
 
 We did a great deal of drilling here. Part of it 
 under a dashing young officer, Lieut. Washington. We 
 had also with us one of the finest looking young men 
 I ever met, Lieut. Gatewood, he was from Bath county, 
 Virginia. He was educated at the Virginia Military 
 Institute at Lexington. He had one of the richest and 
 strongest voices I have ever heard. 
 
 Doing Picket Duty 
 
 Gen. McClellan came up to Belington with 7,000 
 men and laid seige to our position. On our right flank, 
 three-fourths of a mile from our camp, was an old mill 
 held by the enemy. We had a picket post half way 
 between the camp and the mill. One night I was on 
 guard at that post. The position ordered by the sen- 
 tinel was the most exposed and unmilitary one that 
 could have been thought of. I had to pace 100 feet 
 in an open clearing with the bright moon light shining 
 down on me and a deep beech wood 200 feet away on 
 all sides so dark and dense that my vision could not 
 penetrate it. When I had walked my beat about an 
 hour, I heard two menl in the woods near me. They 
 walked entirely around my beat three times. I was in 
 the open and on the post nearest the enemy. For some 
 strange reason no harm came to me. When I was re- 
 
26 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 lieved I told what had occurred and urged that a change 
 be made. The officer of the guard only laughed. The 
 next night the sentinel on tliat post was fired on by a 
 couple of men in the woods near him. But fortunately 
 the bullet only pierced his cartridge box and destroyed 
 some of his ammunition. After that they put three 
 men at this post. 
 
 My Brother Lucius was four years older than I 
 and was father andj brother to me while he lived. I 
 found out afterwards that when my brother learned 
 that I had been sent to this dangerous post he went 
 secretly to the officer of the day and tried to take my 
 post and have me recalled, but the officer declined to 
 do it. 
 
 Shot at by Mistake 
 
 Generally when the Federals shot at us I am led 
 to believe that it was intentional, that they really would 
 have done us bodily harm if they could, but sometimes 
 we were in danger from our own men. 
 
 While at Laurel Hill, CJen. McClellan was at Bel- 
 ington with about 7,000 men. One evening six com- 
 panies of my regiment went down to relieve several com- 
 panies on guard in the woods just in front of the center 
 of the Federals. At a point in the road where we turned 
 up the hill to relieve our men we met Col. Taliaferro 
 who had become separated from his command. Just as 
 we got in line we were fired upon from the top of the 
 hill. We were immediately ordered to charge up the 
 hill and to hold our fire until we could see the enemy. 
 There was a man to mv left who did not like the idea 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 27 
 
 of charging up the hill, so he started and ran back. 
 Lieut. Gatewood halted him and told him that he would 
 shoot him if he did not make the charge with us. So 
 he figured that since he would get shot either way that 
 he might as well go up the hill, and he went with us. 
 We soon found that the whole thing was a mistake, for 
 we had been fired upon by four companies of the 23rd 
 Regiment which we had come to relieve, they, in the 
 twilight mistaking us for the enemy. 
 
 So far as I can remember this was the only instance 
 during the war that I was in such a dangerous place 
 and was not the least bit afraid. 
 
 The Laurel Hill Retreat 
 
 General Pegram had moved forward from Beverly 
 to Rich Mountain, about the time we advanced to Laurel 
 Hill. McClellan attacked Rich Mountain and Pegram 
 capitualated the day before we retreated from Laurel 
 Hill. The Federals cannonaded and skirmished with 
 us several days before the retreat. McClellan flanked 
 us and would have gotten entirely in our rear, if we 
 had not hastily retreated. 
 
 For one hundred hours before the retreat, I was 
 on continuous picket duty on the mountain not far 
 from our camp, getting only snatches of sleep, ten 
 minutes at a time. 
 
 Several days before leaving Laurel Hill our Colonel 
 and seven companies of the 31st was sent down to the 
 old mill on our right flank. Col. Jackson gave very 
 strict orders that we hold that position at all hazards. 
 We had a large ill tempered fellow in the company, 
 
28 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 a man by the name of Griffith. We were in an old mill 
 race which was dry and made very excellent breast 
 works, and we were told that the enemy was only 300 
 yards in front and would attack and charge. When 
 Griffith got this news he adopted the motto of "Safety 
 First" and retired up the hill behind a big tree. Up 
 to this moment he had been very brave and let it be 
 known as far as hisi voice would reach that he was a 
 great fighter and was really yearning for excitement. 
 
 A Long Hard Retreat 
 
 I had been on picket duty for one hundred hours, 
 as I have stated, McClellan had almost surrounded us. 
 General Garnett found it necessary to retreat. It can 
 be readily imagined that many of us were in poor con- 
 dition to endure the hardships of what has since been 
 known as the Laurel Hill Retreat, which took us over 
 mountains and through rivers in rain and mud and 
 underbrush with almost no food and no rest for six 
 days and nights. 
 
 We waded the Cheat river 24 times and had the 
 battle named after that river on one of these six days. 
 On t'he same day we lost our beloved commander Gen. 
 Garnett. I sat on a rock and put on my shoes within 
 ten feet of Gen. Garnett only a few minutes before he 
 was killed. McClellan was in our rear pressing us. Hill 
 was expected to attack us in front with 1,500 men. The 
 31st Regiment was sent forward to meet Hill, so my 
 company was not engaged in the battle at the Ford. 
 Gen. Garnett was sent for hurriedly to go back as the 
 enemy was making an attack on our rear. The Federals 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 29 
 
 came across a bottom a third of a mile from the woods 
 and attacked our men as they were crossing the river. 
 We had Shoemaker's Battery and four brass guns 
 posted on the opposite side of the river. One gun was 
 put out of commission by a shot of the enemy striking 
 it fairly in the muzzle. 
 
 Gen. Garnett had crossed the river to the opposite 
 side, but detailed 20 men of the 23rd Virginia to guard 
 the balance of our wagons across the ford, while he 
 went back to face the enemy. When the last group of 
 wagons was about midway of the stream, Gen. Garnett, 
 seeing that the enemy would kill or capture his guard, 
 ordered them to cross the river behind the wagons. The 
 guards refused to move unless he would go with them. 
 This he would not do. When the men had gotten about 
 half way over the river, the general was about to start 
 in the water but was shot in the breast and killed. He 
 had been an instructor at West Point to Gen, MeClellan, 
 the Federal officer, whose men were just across the 
 mountain pursuing him. 
 
 Gen. MeClellan had Gen. Garnetts body prepared 
 for burial and then sent it through the lines to his home 
 for burial. 
 
 The enemy, as a matter of fact, lost more men at 
 Carrick's Fork than we did, although we were badly 
 crippled. MeClellan did not push his advantage, be- 
 lieving that Gen. Hill would give us battle at Red House, 
 Maryland. This Hill did not do, although we lay badly 
 crippled, tired, hungry and demoralized within 200 feet 
 of his pickets. I understand that he was court mar- 
 tialed for not doing so. At this time we had lost 
 everything we had, except the artillery horses. 
 
30 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 We arrived at Red House, Maryland, about one 
 o'clock, Saturday night and laid down on the side of 
 the road and slept until sunrise. "We then took up the 
 line of retreat again and got back into Virginia at 
 Rocky River bridge. Two incidents occurred that are 
 worth mentioning. Our command had stopped on the 
 Maryland side of the river guarding the rear. A num- 
 ber of cows and calves were grazing near where we 
 camped. We had had nothing to eat for three days 
 and nights but two crackers each. Tom Reed, my bro- 
 ther and myself, killed a calf, stripped the hide from 
 a hind leg, cut out some meat and holding it over a 
 fire with our rani rods began to broil it. We had neither 
 salt nor bread to eat it with, but it tasted good. 
 
 Even this meal was a short one. While we were 
 cooking the meat some cavalry hurried in and told us 
 the enemy was coming. We immediately crossed the 
 bridge and set it on fire. 
 
 A Comrade Divided up With Me 
 
 We started on our way in a hurry. The road was 
 dusty. The sun was hot and we had to climb a long 
 hill after leaving the bridge. While going up the hill. 
 I saw a young fellow eating a piece of raw fat side 
 meat. The grease and dirt, where his fingers dug into 
 the side meat as he held it, showed verj^ plainly, but 
 I was not particular at that time. I did not know him, 
 but I asked him if he thought he had eaten enough of 
 that, and he said he had. He passed it over to me and 
 I took it and ate quite a lot of it, notwithstanding the 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 31 
 
 marks of his fingers, and the dirt and grime from a 
 dusty road, for I was hungry. 
 
 More than twenty years after this incident, and 
 after I had moved to Huntington I was standing in the 
 store of Deacon, J. N. Potts, talking over experiences 
 in the war. Dr. Wall and some one else was present. 
 I told this story giving it plenty of color and not fail- 
 ing to mention how dirty looking the man was who 
 gave me the meat. They laughed about it, and then 
 Deacon Potts gave me the surprise of my life when he 
 said, "I was the man who gave you that meat." but 
 he said, "Even now I feel like whipping you for the 
 way in which you referred to my appearance. ' ' Brother 
 Potts and I had been intimately associated from the 
 day I came to Huntington and have been the closest 
 personal friends up to this time and we will be to the 
 end of the road and beyond. 
 
 Another incident. ]\Iy brother Lucius had had 
 whooping cough and was not very strong. Our shoes 
 had given entirely out. During the march we were 
 without food except a few crackers and the two meat 
 dinners that I have just mentioned. My brother gave 
 out and sat down by the roadside and encouraged me 
 to go on with the Company. I refused to leave him. 
 Capt. Cooper came along and finding that my brother 
 could get no further asked him if he had any money. 
 He said that he had spent his last cent the day before. 
 "Well", said Capt. Cooper, "I am strong an,d will give 
 you all I have." He turned his back to us and put a 
 silver quarter in my brothers hand. It was all the 
 money that Capt, Cooper had. He finally got strong 
 
32 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 enough to travel slowly and we found our way through 
 the woods to the home of a man who had nothing in his 
 house to eat but a few small onions. He told us that 
 if we would go to the big white house, about two miles 
 away, that we would get something to eat, as his wife 
 was up there cooking for the soldiers. 
 
 We finally reached the big white house and found 
 our cavalry rear guards there trying to get something 
 to eat. The road in front of the house was a mass of 
 men and horses. I went back to the kitchen and told 
 an old colored woman that if she would get me some 
 corn bread and buttermilk I would give her a quarter. 
 "Well honey," she said, "you come into de kitchen and 
 when I lifs up the top of the oven you grab." I did 
 this three times and we had a royal meal. I never 
 remember eating anything in my life that tasted as 
 good. INIy brother was greatly strengthened for it was 
 the first real food that we had had in about four days. 
 In the strength of this food, we traveled skirting along 
 in the woods and fields until two o'clock that night, 
 when we caught up with our command. 
 
 We Kept on Going 
 
 Then we came to Petersburg in Hampshire County. 
 Here we got flour and some of us thinking we had plenty 
 of time, carried our flour away up in the town to have 
 it baked. We got hold of a big chunk of beef and were 
 having that baked but, before we had the bread baked 
 or the beef cooked, those blamed Yankees came tearing 
 down on us with a rush and we had to leave the place 
 hungry and in a very bad humor. We waded across the 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 33 
 
 river, which at that point is about 150 yards wide and 
 while not very deep, had a slippery bottom on account 
 of the large boulders. 
 
 The next thing I remember was a great crowd of 
 friendly people who came in to see us at Franklin in 
 Pendleton County and brought great loads of provisions 
 to us. The men were nearly perished and certainly not 
 very polite, and it finally ended by men getting in each 
 wagon and throwing out meat and bread and pies and 
 cakes, like a farmer throws corn to his hogs. We almost 
 had a riot at this point when it was reported that some 
 of the provisions brought in by the farmers were taken 
 by the officers and sold to the soldiers. This may or 
 may not have been true. I did not believe it, and think 
 that it grew out of the imagination of a lot of half 
 starved men. 
 
 From this place, it was only about 25 miles to 
 Monterey in Highland County, Virginia, the end of the 
 retreat. We were joined here by the 3rd Arkansas 
 Regiment, urder Col. Rust, a very brave and impetuous 
 officer, also by another four gun battery and two com- 
 panies of cavalry. After being there about two weeks 
 we all moved forward to Greenbrier river at the west 
 foot of the Alleghany mountains at a place which we 
 named Camp Bartow. 
 
 At Camp Bartow 
 
 At Monterey we had a man about forty years old, 
 belonging to our company, by the name of George Arbo, 
 he was very untidy, not to say dirty and he had an 
 enormous appetite. I do not know how much he really 
 
34 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 could eat, but I remember one evening at supper, seeing 
 him drink six pint tin cups of coffee. I think he liked 
 coffee. 
 
 While at Camp Bartow, Capt. Stofer, whom I have 
 mentioned before as to making a speech at Philippi in 
 which he said we could lick all of Lincoln's soldiers 
 with a peach tree switch, came in to camp again. He 
 was visibly subdued. He had been a prisoner and had 
 just made his escape. He still wore his black, long 
 tailed coat, or at least what was left of it. After run- 
 ning as hard as he had for so many days to avoid meet- 
 ing some of Lincoln's men, he was very docile. So far 
 as I know after that, he took no active part in the war. 
 
 Here we were increased in number by the 44th 
 Virginia, the 12th Georgia, with Col. Edward E. Johns- 
 ton, and by Hanshaws battery of infantry, and by the 
 25th Virginia battery of infantry, with Maj. Rogers. 
 Soon after this my brother Lucius was on picket at the 
 foot of Cheat mountain, having some men on the post 
 with him. Two cavalry . videttes were out in front of 
 them and discovered about 60 men in blue at the top 
 of Cheat mountain. These men rode by the post and 
 yelled to the boys that the enemy was coming. Almost 
 before they could get ready the enemy double quicked 
 around the turn in platoon formation. Two of the 
 pickets ran without firing, but my brother and a man 
 by the name of Slocum fired at the enemy about 60 
 yards away. They then had to run to escape capture. 
 Slocum escaped. My brother, who was sickly, could 
 not run so well. He climbed a fence and started across 
 a little meadow. The Federals rested their guns on 
 the fence and fired at him. One bullet pierced his right 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 35 
 
 arm, two cut him across the right shoulder and one 
 across the right hip. He was the first man in this 
 regiment to be wounded. After a long time the wounds 
 healed, but his right arm was crooked and there was 
 only strength in his fingers to pull a trigger. 
 
 He was taken to a hospital in Harrisonburg, Va. 
 and even before his wounds healed he took typhoid 
 fever, which nearly ended his life. But he recovered 
 and soon after entered the 10th Virginia infantry, in 
 Capt. Milhorn's company. 
 
 The Cheat Mountain Expedition 
 
 Shortly after my brother was wounded, 1,600 men 
 volunteered under Col. Rusk, to go on what was known 
 as the Cheat Mountain Expedition. The Federals were 
 well entrenched and fortified on top of Cheat mountain. 
 One group was to take a guide and go to the rear of 
 the fortifications on Cheat mountain and a simultaneous 
 attack was to be made by Gen. Henry Jackson on the 
 front with 2,900 men. 
 
 I was a volunteer with the 1,600 men who went in 
 the rear of the enemy's camp and fortifications. "We 
 were three days and nights getting into position in 
 rear of the enemy's camp. Cheat mountains are a long 
 range paralleling the Alleghanies and very close to 
 them on the west. Our party (the 1,600) was made 
 up of volunteers from all the commands and the hope 
 was that we could take the summit of the mountain 
 where the Parkersburg and Staunton pike crosses. The 
 place was well fortified, having a block house, with 
 heavj' guns in it in the center of the camp and heavy 
 
36 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 rifle pitts entirely around. This place was defended 
 by 3,200 men, when we started, but they must 
 have gotten wind of ■ our movements, for the 
 night before the attack they were reinforced 
 by 3,000 men. 
 
 We reached our position in the rear of the enemy, 
 after a horrible trip in the mountains, probably 50 
 miles. We waded down the Cheat river, over five miles, 
 because the laurel was so thick on the banks we could 
 not get through. Sometimes the water was almost up 
 to our necks. At nine o'clock, the night before the 
 attack, we were a mile and one half from the enemy. 
 Every thread of clothing on us was soaked by the rain 
 and the river. It rained on us continually five days 
 and nights. We lay down on the mountain, over a mile 
 from the camp, having cut brushes off the trees to put 
 under us. It was absolutely dark. There was not one 
 ray of light. Not a word was spoken above a whisper, 
 for two days and nights. When we moved forward that 
 night, each man held on to the jacket or belt of his 
 file leader. Many slipped and fell and some were right 
 much hurt. My company, C of the 31st Virginia, com- 
 manded by Capt. Cooper, was deployed a third of a 
 mile west of the enemy's fortification. The enemy not 
 knowing that we were there sent a large detachment 
 down to relieve picket guard. Wlien they were opposite 
 our company we fired. This alarmed the camp above 
 us and they sent probably a thousand men and two 
 pieces of artillery to attack us. There were only a 
 few casualties, but we captured 90 men. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 37 
 
 Too Much For Us 
 
 At this juncture a council of war was held and 
 it was discovered that 3,000 men had come to the enemy 
 the night before. Rusk and one other officer favored 
 an immediate attack, but all of the others opposed it. 
 Then Col. Rusk began to withdraw his men, but in his 
 hurry he forgot our company. We came very near being 
 captured. The enemy had a heavy column on each side 
 of our flank. We got out and caught the rear of our 
 forces, three fourths of a mile away. Col Rusk came 
 back and finding that we did not have our knap sacks 
 and equipment, asked where they were. We had strip- 
 ped for the fight and had left them. He made a sharp 
 order for us to go back and get them. We were in the 
 extreme rear of the command and in single file. We 
 about faced and started back, Seargent, Bill Taylor, 
 being in advance. When we got down in sight of our 
 baggage, I turned and looked back and there were only 
 seven of us. Soon I looked again and everybody had 
 gone but Bill Taylor and myself. 
 
 The enemy was going up on either side of us and 
 we would soon be entirely cut off. The Yankees were 
 punching bayonets into our baggage and shooting holes 
 in it. Taylor insisted on shooting at them, but I 
 strongly urged that he should not do so. Finally I got 
 Bill away and we caught up with the army. We lost 
 the 90 prisoners we had captured and 40 of our own 
 men. 
 
 After almost incredible hardships, returning by 
 the same route, wading this time up the river, as we 
 had before waded down for over five miles, having lost 
 
38 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 over 200 of our men, having lost our prisoners, thorough- 
 ly dispirited, tired and hungry, we got back into camp. 
 
 The main body of the army, under Gen. Jackson, 
 had made at attack on the enemy's front but were re- 
 pulsed. Jackson and his men got back to camp several 
 days before we did. It would be impossible to describe 
 the condition of our men when we returned to Camp 
 Bartow, foot-sore, weary, half starved, ragged, dirty, 
 discouraged and many of them sick. 
 
 General Reynolds Attacks 
 
 After recruiting, resting and drilling a long time, 
 we were in pretty good shape when Gen. Reynolds at- 
 tacked us on October 3, 1861. We had the 31st Virginia, 
 23rd Virginia, 1st and 12th Georgia, 25th Virginia Batt., 
 two four gun batteries and two or three cavalry com- 
 panies. General Jackson commanded. Reynolds attack- 
 ed early in the morning. The largest part of the fight- 
 ing was done by artillery. We had about 2,500 men and 
 the Federals 3,500. They attacked us while we occupied 
 a fine position on the foot hills of the Alleghanies. Two 
 of our cannons fired over our heads about fifteen feet 
 above us on the side of the mountain. The gun just 
 above me fired 85 times, and the reports were deafening 
 to me. My hearing was badly injured by the noise. A 
 gunner in the company next to me performed a very 
 heroic action during the fight. The enemy was throw- 
 ing shells at us. One fell above the rifle pits and rolled 
 down among the men before bursting. This gunner 
 grabbed the shell and threw it out just 2 seconds be- 
 fore it burst. Had he not done this it would probably 
 have killed and wounded a large number of our men. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 39 
 
 During this engagement in the forenoon the camp 
 guard had not been relieved. The men were pacing 
 their beats in front of the regiment when a thirteen inch 
 shell came across. It seems to have struck the commis- 
 sary building at the foot of the hill, then, ricocheting, 
 struck the ground once, then struck the gun of a sen- 
 tinel. He was at support arms. The point of the shell 
 struck the barrel near the last band and, reversing ends, 
 struck the barrel just below the first band, doubling the 
 gun in the shape of a hoop and knocking the sentinel 
 about twenty feet. Strangely enough, the sentinel was 
 not much hurt. He got up, found his gun, went up to 
 the colonel's quarters and speaking as though he was 
 greatly at fault in the matter, said, "Colonel, my gun 
 is knocked all to pieces and I want to know if you will 
 give me another one." I was present at the moment 
 and Col. Jackson said, "Yes, indeed," but you send 
 that old gun home to your people. Nothing like that 
 has ever happened to anyone before." 
 
 John, Dan and Ed Smith were in my company, 
 but for two weeks, John had been away sick. When 
 they heard the roar of the guns, during the fight, some- 
 one notified Dan and myself, that Mr. Smith and John 
 had come and were on our right in a ravine, being 
 stopped there by an officer. We got permission to go 
 to Mr. Smith, who was 73 years old, paralyzed on one 
 side, had very little use of himself and had to be helped 
 on and off his horse. When we got to him the old man 
 was angry and was contending with an officer, who would 
 not let him go into the fight. I said, "Mr. Smith, you 
 must not go up that bank for you will be hurt." He 
 said, "What do you mean, sir? My blood is as rapid 
 
40 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 now as it ever was.'' "We could do nothing with him, 
 and an officer compelled him to keep under the hill out 
 of the range of musketry until the engagement was over. 
 The fight lasted about eight and one half hours, 
 and at its conclusion we held our position and the enemy 
 retreated to his block house, ten miles away, on the top 
 of Cheat mountain. 
 
 My Cousin Willie Manly 
 
 During our stay at Camp Bartow, my cousin, Wil- 
 lie Manly of the 44th Virginia infantry, took typhoid 
 fever and when the doctor found that he was going to 
 die, they sent for his father to come to get him. The 
 only means of transportation back over the mountain 
 was in heavy army wagons. 
 
 Uncle Peter got the boy in one of them and they 
 reached Hightown at the end of the first day and camp- 
 ed. Before morning the spirit of cousin Willie departed 
 and Uncle Peter kept on home to Fluvanna County with 
 the dead body of his boy. 
 
 Willie was a fine, manly fellow and a good soldier. 
 Once while he was sick in a big hospital tent, I went 
 to see him and he said, "Cousin Henry, won't you bring 
 me a canteen of that good cold spring water behind your 
 camp." I said I would and I went and got it, but the 
 doctors would not let him have the cold water and the 
 nurse hung the canteen up. Poor boy, that night he 
 watched the chance and crawled out of bed and drank 
 so much water that the doctor said it would kill him 
 and I suppose it did. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 41 
 
 Col. Edward E. Johnson 
 
 Col. Johnson was a Georgian and an old Army 
 officer before the war. He came to Virginia in command 
 of the 12th Georgia. He was a man of undoubted 
 courage and a good officer. One or two incidents will 
 show his character. 
 
 At Camp Bartow, while commander of the army, 
 he used to ride about to his picket posts at very un- 
 reasonable hours and often found his sentinels not ex- 
 pecting him. One rainy night he went up the mountain 
 road a couple of miles, unattended. When within 60 
 feet of the post, the sentry halted him and ordered 
 him to dismount, hands up, bridle rein over arm, ad- 
 vance and give the countersign. This was alright and 
 the General dismounted and came up. He was halted 
 within twenty feet of the sentry. "Halt, and counter-^ 
 sign," shouted the sentry. "I have no countersign, I 
 am Gen. Johnson." "I don't know who you are and 
 I don't care who you are, mark time, march." The 
 general was compelled to mark time while the sentinel 
 sent the word out the line for the Officer of the Guard. 
 The mud was deep, but the sentry kept the General 
 marking time until the officer came and relieved him. 
 
 The General complimented the sentry very much 
 of his soldierly way of doing. The sentry told some of 
 the boys later that he knew the old 'Son of a Gun' all 
 the time but he wanted to get even because the General 
 had put him in the guardhouse once for getting drunk. 
 
 At the battle of Alleghany Mountain, Gen, Johnson 
 was marching along the hill with the men and carrying 
 
42 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 a stick about two feet long waving it before his eyes, 
 and yelling, '^Give "em Hell boys, Give 'em Hell." 
 
 At McDowell, the General was shot in the foot as 
 he was leading his men up tlie hill into the fight. One 
 of his old regiment, seeing him laying close to the lines 
 as they went up the hill, turned out and said, "Oh, 
 General are you hurt, can I help you?" "No Sir, 
 Damn you, you go on up the hill into the fight, you are 
 just trying to get out of it." 
 
 At Camp Yeager 
 
 About the 25th of November, we went back up 
 the mountain to Yeagers, where we went into camp and 
 fortified. 
 
 On the 13th of December, our army was attacked 
 by the Federals from the top of Cheat Mountain. The 
 fight raged for nearly nine hours, but the enemy was 
 driven back with very hea^n,- loss. Our losses, also were 
 severe. Our Company C lost eighteen, killed and 
 wounded out of about 42 men in the fight. Out of our 
 commissioned and non-commissioned officers, everyone 
 but myself was killed, wounded or missing. I was a 
 Corporal at the time and the command of the company 
 devolved on me for two weeks. We buried six of our 
 men in one grave, and I commanded the firing party. 
 
 We lost a great man there in the person of Capt. 
 Anderson, a Captain of Artillery. He saw some men 
 in the edge of the woods toward Greenbank. Supposing 
 them to be our Greenbank pickets driven in, he rode 
 out and called to them to come on in. The men raised 
 their guns and fired, killing him instantly. It was a 
 
 i 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 43 
 
 detachment of the enemy that had slipped up through 
 the woods and impersonated our men. The Captain 
 had been a soldier in Mexico and in the Indian Wars 
 and was killed in his 58th battle. 
 
 The night following the battle, I was dreadfully 
 busy. We had to go over a field hunting for the wound- 
 ed. I remember that up on the side of the mountain, 
 about eleven o'clock, we found several wounded Yan- 
 kees. One of them was shot through the thigh and 
 groin. He swore frightfully, cursing every one of us 
 and saying, "If our men had all fought like I did, 
 there would have been none of you left to tell the tale. 
 Poor fellow, he died the next day. 
 
 Very many incidents might be related of the Battle 
 of Alleghany Mountains and of camp life here that 
 might be interesting, but I have not time to dwell on 
 these things now. Fifty years have gone by and much 
 has been entirely forgotten and some things though 
 partially remembered are now hazy and indistinct. 
 
 I find it especially difficult to remember names and 
 dates of long ago. Men that I was familiarly acquainted 
 with and some of them that I can see in my minds eye, 
 almost as plain as a picture of them would be, are now 
 entirely forgotten as to their names. 
 
 Sent to a Hospital 
 
 About January 1st, 1862, our surgeons said that 
 if I could be taken to the hospital at Staunton, Virginia, 
 I would probably get well again. Col. Edward John- 
 son, mentioned above, in command of the brigade, swore 
 that "No man strong enough to sit up in his bed and 
 
44 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 pull a trigger should go." After considerable effort 
 on the part of Brigade Surgeon Bland, and his assistant 
 Dr. Buttermore, I was taken to Cow Pasture river, 
 where they had to leave me for some days in order that 
 I might be strong enough to go on to the hospital at 
 Staunton. 
 
 I think I remained at Staunton until April, when 
 we were sent on to Lynchburg. Two incidents of my 
 stay at Staunton come to me just now that I will relate. 
 
 In the previous fall my trip in the attack on Cheat 
 Mountain had caused me to take a dreadful cold and 
 my fall in the river had brought a great sore on my 
 left leg, which finally spread up to my body and down 
 to the ankle. Among other troubles from this cause 
 came an abscess on my neck on the left side, which grew 
 as large as a pint cup. Dr. Minor, the chief Surgeon, 
 fearing it would break inside, in which case he said I 
 would die, decided to open it. Two surgeons came to 
 do this and wanted to give me an anesthetic, which I 
 refused. Then, said Dr. Minor, ''I shall arrange the 
 matter by having three men hold you during the opera- 
 tion. " This scared me worse than ever, and I declared 
 I would not submit to this, but if he would allow it, I 
 would sit on a chair and grip it strongly and be per- 
 fectly still during the operation. Dr. Minor insisted 
 that I could not do this and that if I flinched or at- 
 tempted to evade the knife in any way, it would prob- 
 ably be fatal to me. I do not know how I summoned 
 enough nerve, but I did. They made two incisions 
 of about two and one half inches across horizontally 
 and there came out a quart of puss. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 45 
 
 The other incident was this : After I began to get 
 better and was allowed to walk about the grounds, a 
 comrade from Philippi and myself were often together 
 and we agreed that as we were not given enough to eat, 
 we would get some on the side. We bought a fat hen 
 and some butter and flour and agreed with one of the 
 cooks at the hospital to give him all he could eat of 
 our pie for baking it. I remember Fred and I sat in 
 front of the kitchen window and waited and waited 
 for that pie to get done. Finally when we were nearly 
 starved, the man came out carrying our pie in a big 
 stove pan, just as he had taken it from the oven. We 
 ate enough to kill us, but it didn't hurt us a bit. I 
 have always thought well of myself for the part I had 
 as to that chicken pie. 
 
 At Lynchburg 
 
 About 225 of us were taken to Lynchburg in April 
 and put in an improvised hospital. The building had 
 formerly been used as a tobacco factory. 
 
 One morning I woke up in this place and found 
 two dead men, one on either .side of me. The cots were 
 about two and one half feet apart. There were about 
 160 patients in the factory, a large brick building with 
 a partition running through the middle, the partition 
 having arched openings between. 
 
 One of our men, Geo. Lurty, had his jaw broken 
 by Lieut. Jim Galvin on Alleghany Mountain in a 
 drunken brawl. I had helped him by poulticing his 
 jaw and otherwise doctoring him. He was also in 
 Tjynchburg. By this time the wound in his jaw had 
 
46 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 separated and had produced a round hole in the jaw 
 I was on the street one day and heard George convers- 
 ing with a very nice old citizen. George was telling 
 him about the battle of Alleghany Mountain and how 
 lie was shot through the cheek. I do not remember 
 how long I stayed at Lynchburg. I was afflicted with 
 a hurt I had received the previous summer at Cheat 
 river, when we attacked Cheat Mountain stronghold. 
 I had fallen in the river and hurt my knee, as mentioned. 
 There came something like a blood boil on my knee. This 
 developed into a sore, which extended up to my waist 
 and down to my ankle. I suppose I must have taken 
 cold, which caused this sore. In addition to this, I 
 was worn out and run down to such an extent that the 
 head doctor held a consultation with the surgeon and 
 decided that I would not get well. So they decided 
 that they would make me ward master in the building 
 where I was, and if I declined that honor, they would 
 discharge me from the service. I very promptly de- 
 clined the position of ward master, which place I had 
 not the physical strength to fill. Soon after that they 
 sent me to my regiment for discharge. The oversight 
 or meanness of sending me to my regiment for discharge, 
 consisted in sending me off without furnishing me with 
 either transportation or money, and I was so weak that 
 I could scarcely walk a square. 
 
 Soon after getting on the train, going from Lynch- 
 burg to Charlottsville and realizing that I had no money, 
 I curled up on a seat. "When the conductor came by he 
 did not waken me or ask for fare. I heard him say 
 "Poor Fellow, he is sick," and passed on. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 47 
 
 At Charlottsville, I changed to the Virginia Cen- 
 tral, now the C. & 0. and came to Staunton. I had 
 known this conductor from a boy. When I told him 
 who my father was, he remembered him well and carried 
 me without pay. At Staunton I cought a wagon going 
 to camp, eight mile^ away and got back to the old Regi- 
 ment again. They believed from the Surgeon's report 
 from Lynchburg, that I "wauld not live long and gave 
 me my discharge and pay. The pay was in confeder- 
 ate money, but the depreciation at that time was not 
 more than 25 per cent. I was getting $13.50 per month, 
 and while I had four months back pay, it did not go 
 very far. Soon after this, I went down to Uncle Peter 
 Manly 's in Fluvanna County to get well. 
 
 Back Into the Service 
 
 I came back to the valley, after a little while, and 
 met Jackson's forces (Stonewall) coming up from Win- 
 chester, where he had achieved a great victory, had 
 captured many prisoners and nearly 4,000 wagon loads 
 of provisions and ammunition. My brother Lucius, who 
 had been so badly wounded at the foot of Cheat Moun- 
 tain, the fall before, was at this time in the Valley with 
 Jackson and had ehargej of a large train of ordnance 
 supplies, captured at Winchester. My brother was an 
 Ordnance Officer on Stonewall Jackson's staff. 2,300 
 prisoners were brought in ahead of the army and sent 
 to Richmond via Staunton. As before stated, I was 
 sick and could hardly get about, but I had an oppor- 
 tunity to ride a horse to Staunton and supposing that 
 Jackson would follow right on to Staunton I went up 
 
48 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 the valley. Next day I found that Jackson had turned 
 off the Valley pike, south of Harrisonburg and taken the 
 Fort Republic road. 
 
 About one half mile from where Jackson left the 
 pike there is a piece of timber land. A school house 
 stood in this timber, and it was here that Gen. Turner 
 Ashby was killed on the evening of the day I went up 
 to Staunton. On the following morning, learning that 
 Jackson's army had gone to Fort Republic, I turned 
 and came down to Mt. Sidney, pushing on by a road 
 Southeast of that point. I nearly ran into the soldiers 
 of the opposing army, and into the battle of Cross Keys. 
 I could not reach our forces by that route. The follow- 
 ing morning I went down to the Virginia Central, some 
 ten miles, on my way to Fort Republic. I got within 
 a mile of town. Jackson had defeated the enemy at 
 Cross Keys, had crossed the river that night and in 
 the early morning had given battle to Gen. Shields, 
 just below Port Republic. Wlieu I had gotten near 
 the town, I had been meeting a lot of ambulances, 
 wagons, men on horseback and a good many on foot, 
 but everj^hing was in confusion. I could learn noth- 
 ing of what was going on. Of course I could hear the 
 booming of cannons and the rattle of small arms, but 
 just at this point, two or three officers rode hurriedly 
 from the direction of Port Republic and ordered every- 
 one going in that direction to turn and hurry to the 
 rear so as to give way to the retiring troups. 
 
 It was probably nine hours later, after we had all 
 turned back that I learned that Jackson had defeated 
 Shields. There was no action during the war that I 
 regretted not being in more than this one. To be sure 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 49 
 
 I was on the sick list and was under no obligations to 
 be in it, but my brother was there and I wanted more 
 than I can tell, to be with him. But I had no horse, 
 and was scarcely able to walk. I shall always believe 
 that the officers that came out of the town that morning 
 and turned us back were getting out of the fight them- 
 selves. 
 
 Cross Keys and Port Republic 
 
 It was at Port Republic in the early dawn of the 
 morning, that Stonewall Jackson started across the 
 bridge. Whether he knew the enemy was there or not 
 I cannot tell. When he came within twenty feet of 
 the muzzle of a gun, the men who manned it all being 
 in their places, his quick wit and courage saved him. 
 He demanded, "who ordered this gun placed here?" 
 They supposing him to one of their own officers in 
 authority, were put out by his question and for a 
 moment fell away from the gun. Jackson spurred his 
 horse and dashed away from the bridge, and, although 
 they quickly discovered they had been sold out, they 
 fired and missed him. 
 
 These two battles. Cross Keys and Port Republic, 
 showed magnificant generalship on the part of Jack- 
 son. He came up the valley, apparently fleeing from 
 the enemy. Fremont, with a large army, mostly Ger- 
 mans, followed him up the Shenandoah Valley, while 
 Shields came up the Massonetta Valley parallel to the 
 other army, and not more than twenty miles apart. 
 Their plan probably was to form a junction near Staun- 
 ton and crush the Confederates. They evidently mis- 
 
50 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 understood the kind of military brain that Jackson 
 carried under that old grey cap. After Port Republic 
 Jackson fell back to Brown's Gap. 
 
 The second day after the battle of Port Republic, 
 I went down the river on the East side of the Blue 
 Ridge and up to Brown's Gap, where Jackson had fal- 
 len back for safety and to rest his troops. Here I 
 found my brother Lucius laying under some small trees 
 and bushes, very sick and I think at times, unconscious. 
 He had undergone great hardships in the previous four 
 weeks. He had brought the captured stores out of 
 Winchester and had safely gotten them out of the hands 
 of the enemy. 
 
 Taking My Brother's Place 
 
 I think it was the day following my reaching the 
 army that we had orders to move. Of course we did 
 not know where. We had heard that Whitings Division 
 from Lee's Army had gone on to Staunton by rail. 
 Most of us had the notion that we would go after and 
 destroy Fremont and Shields. Then when we were 
 ordered East we felt sure that we would go up to 
 Richmond to confront McClellan. 
 
 When our part of the command reached Charlotts- 
 ville, I was ordered to take my brother's place under 
 Capt. Hugh Lee for the campain East and my brother 
 was ordered to go down into Fluvanna County to Uncle 
 Peter Manly 's to get well. At this point Gen. Whit- 
 ing's one half division passed us on the way to Rich- 
 mond. I think this division was sent up there to deceive 
 the Federals. We felt that as these men were fresh, 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 51 
 
 having ridden from Richmond, only a few days before, 
 that they should have walked and some of the other 
 foot soldiers have ridden. But Jackson decided differ- 
 ently, and probably he was right. 
 
 The fight of the Seven Days Battle was opened 
 by Jackson at Mechanisville early in June, 1862, and 
 for seven bloody days the battle waged until its close 
 at Malvern Hill. When our fellows went cautiously 
 over the enemy's ground the next morning they were 
 not in sight. They had moved off before daylight down 
 to the river and had gotten themselves safely under 
 cover of their Gun Boats, at Harrison's Landing. 
 
 Terrible Scenes 
 
 I am not writing a history of the war, but I am 
 jotting down personal things that occurred during these 
 four years. 
 
 I sometimes think I saw more dead and wounded 
 men and horses during these seven days that I have 
 ever seen in my life. 
 
 At Frazier's farm I looked carefully over about 
 two and one half acres of ground, where a very large 
 number of men had fallen. I think one might have 
 walked over and over this ground from any direction 
 and never put his foot on anything but dead men, I 
 counted 32 corpses in a log stable not over twenty feet 
 square, where they had been barricaded and were shoot- 
 ing between the logs. 
 
 For a great many years, following the war of the 
 sixties, my stomach has been sensitive and if any filthy 
 sight meets my eyes or unpleasant odor assails my nose. 
 
PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 I cannot eat, even though I be very hungry. But it 
 was not always thus. Just after one of these battles 
 and on a hot day I was surrounded by dead men and 
 horses. Coming to a little ravine I sat down on the 
 rump of a dead horse that really smelled very badly 
 and ate a bit of lunch. Bei"ng very thirsty, I went to 
 the rivulet and lying prone upon the ground took a 
 big drink of water. Getting up from the ground and 
 looking up the rivulet I saw a dead horse laying across 
 the stream. 
 
 A Message to Jackson 
 
 The next day after the battle of Frazier's farm, 
 I was sent with a dispatch to Stonewall Jackson with 
 orders to go to a certain apple tree near the main house 
 and deliver the message to him. This I was anxious to 
 do, but not finding the General at his headquarters and 
 the day being very hot, I put the bridle rein over the 
 horse's head and lay down on a plank, one end of 
 which was set up in the tree about four and one half 
 feet from the ground. I was tired and so laid back 
 on the plank with my feet on the ground. I do not 
 know how long I laid there, but I awoke with a start 
 which rapidly reached a great big scare. Before me 
 stood a big Union soldier, with a gun in his hand. I 
 pretended not to see him and closed my eyes again like 
 I was still asleep. I was wondering what in the world 
 I would do. 
 
 I finally decided to blufl: it out, so I opened my 
 eyes and apparently saw him for the first time. I 
 shouted to him, though he was less than six feet away. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 53 
 
 "What are you doing here, sir?" "What do you want?" 
 To my utter surprise he answered, "I came in to sur- 
 render, bedad. ' ' I was greatly relieved and said, ' ' Give 
 me your gun, sir." And when he handed it up to me 
 I felt like thanking him. His explanation to me was. 
 that he had been in the regular army for eight years, 
 and when the war came on he was somewhere on the 
 frontier. They promised not to send him East, as he 
 would not fight against his own people. They evidently 
 forgot this and his regiment was sent East. He said, 
 "I have been in this seven days fight, begad, but I 
 always fired in the air." He said he was lost from his 
 regiment in the swamp the night before and was de- 
 termined to come in and surrender. 
 
 I turned him over to Gen. Jackson, whom he said 
 he knew, as he had served with him in Mexico. I sup- 
 pose that this must have been true because I was told 
 that Jackson recognized him and gave him a parole. 
 
 I have always believed that Gen. McClellan's mili- 
 tary ability was of a very high order, else he never 
 could have extricated as much of his army from the 
 Chickahominy swamps as he did, and carried them safe- 
 ly to Harrison's Landing. I cannot believe, even now, 
 that he would have succeeded but for disobedience of 
 orders on the part of Gen. Hughes, who I have always 
 understood, was directed by Lee to throw his division 
 across a certain main road on which McClellan was re- 
 treating, and thus prevent his escape. Either from' 
 misunderstanding of orders or some other cause Gen. 
 Hughes did not move his division to the point indicated 
 for 24 hours, and thus he allowed the Federal Army 
 to escape almost certain capture or destruction. 
 
54 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Malvern Hill 
 
 The last of the Seven Days battle was in some 
 respects the most desperate of the seven. The enemy 
 was making a last grand effort to save himself, and the 
 battle lasted until 9 :30 at night. The cannonading was 
 absolutely terrific. The musketry was continuous and 
 dreadful. The enemy fought as hard as they fought 
 at any time during the whole war. Our men were 
 thrown time and again at the hill, in the attempt to 
 drive them off. After the most desperate efforts they 
 were withdrawn a short distance to wait for morning. 
 
 "When the morning light came, it was found that 
 McClellan had retreated under the shadow of his Gun 
 Boats, not daring to risk another daylight battle. Dur- 
 ing the battle at Malvern Hill, some of our very best 
 Brigades stormed the enemy lines and were beaten back 
 time and again. Just after a desperate assault one of 
 Jackson's brigades was driven back with fearful loss, 
 and they were so much demoralized that by ones and 
 twos and dozens they were leaving the field. Finally 
 Jackson, seeing that many of his men were completely 
 demoralized, threw himself among them and endeavored 
 to halt them and turn them back, but there was no use. 
 This was probably the only occasion during the war that 
 this great soldier failed in stopping a rout among his 
 men. 
 
 As a matter of fact, the Union Army had been 
 doing splendid fighting and had been ably led, but this 
 fight was too much for them. When McClellan reached 
 Harrison's Landing and placed his army in the shadow 
 of the gun boats it was a worn and demoralized rem- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 55 
 
 nant of the magnificent hosts that stood before Rich- 
 mond, when the fight opened at Mechanicsville. 
 
 Some days after this my brother returned from 
 Uncle Peter Manly 's and as I was worn out, I left the 
 army and went through Richmond on up to Uncle 
 Peter's. 
 
 Uncertain Transportation Facilities 
 
 Before leaving I got hold of a mule that we cap- 
 tured in one of the last fights. This mule was about 
 the ugliest quadruped that I ever saw. He had the 
 hair rubbed off him in many places by the harness, but 
 in other places on his body and especially on his belly 
 the hair had grown from three to four inches long. 
 His attitude was that of perversity. He threw me off 
 three times the morning I left. When he could not 
 get me oft' any other way, he would rush out into the 
 bushes and trees and scrape me off. He succeeded in 
 kicking my legs several times while I was in the saddle. 
 
 I overtook a sick soldier from Alabama, lying on 
 the road side resting. I felt like being kind to him 
 and asked him to ride. I rather think he did not like 
 the looks of that mule, but after some pursuasion he 
 got on and started. He had not gotten over 25 feet 
 when he was thrown off in the sand. I laughed at him 
 and told him that he did not know how to ride. He 
 bristled up and mounted again. The mule promptly 
 threw him off the second time. Then he was mad at 
 me and the mule. After much persuasion and kidding 
 on my part he remounted after I had promised to lead 
 the animal, which I did with a long rope. The rope 
 
56 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 was 20 or more feet long, and this was necessary for 
 safety, because, even at this distance, I had trouble 
 in keeping out of the animal's way. 
 
 It was about seven miles through Richmond from 
 the Rockets to the West end of Broad Street and, there I 
 was, leading that mule all the way, being constantly 
 followed by a crowd from 50 to 150 boys yelling and 
 jeering at me. Every little while the mule would amuse 
 himself and the boys by either kicking me or them. 
 
 Five miles from town I overtook a man driving 
 a good looking sorrel mare. I must have inherited a 
 tendency to trade horses. It is a weakness that one 
 should try to overcome. I had only been with that 
 feUow a few minutes when we began to trade. He 
 explained that the slight limp which his horse showed 
 came from catching her shoe in the planks of a bridge, 
 a few days before, but that she was the gentlest animal 
 he had ever known. 
 
 We swapped. 
 
 I went on a couple of miles and stopped for the 
 night. That mare had the worst case of bone spavin 
 and, in the fourteen years that she had lived, had de- 
 veloped the most awful temper that I have even seen 
 in a domestic animal. She also had a bad sore on her 
 back that I had not noticed. I sold her for a very 
 small figure to a farmer. He tried to make her plow, 
 but it sometimes took three or four negro men to get 
 her to go and then keep her going. 
 
 Jackson's Tactics 
 
 I have already stated that all of Jackson's foot 
 soldiers were very indignant when Wilcox's and other 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 57 
 
 divisions were sent East by rail while they had to walk. 
 
 In the first place these fresh troops were sent West 
 as a strategic move to deceive the enemy. They were 
 sent West as though Jackson contemplated a trip with 
 his army to follow up the Federal forces around Win- 
 chester. As a matter of fact it was arranged by Lee 
 and Jackson to immediately double back these fresh 
 troops to the front of Richmond and of course they 
 reached there before Jackson's foot soldiers did. 
 
 Another thing we never understood, and because 
 of it were greatly worried. Just as soon as Jackson's 
 Army reached North Richmond, one of his divisions 
 opened the Seven Days battle at Mechanicsville. 
 
 One incident is related of how Jackson was able 
 to keep his own counsel. Stonewall was riding in front 
 of the Army with several of his staff. In passing a 
 large gate near one of those old Colonial Homes that 
 are frequently seen in Virginia, a very pompous looking 
 old gentleman rode out. He immediately saluted the 
 
 General, rode along side and said, "my name is , 
 
 I am very well and favorably known here in this State. 
 I am a strong Southern man. I think I am perfectly 
 reliable and I want you to tell me where your next 
 battle with the Federals will take place." 
 
 The General looked at him kindly and said, "Can 
 you keep a secret?" "Yes sir," replied the gentleman, 
 ' ' I can. " " Glad to know that, sir, ' ' said Gen. Jackson, 
 "So can I." 
 
 Around Richmond 
 
 General McClellan had a large army, probably 
 180,000 men, on the peninsula. They were well equipp- 
 
58 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 ed and I have no doubt that they were all, from Mc- 
 Clellan to the rawest private, confident of going into 
 Richmond within a few days. 
 
 Lee had about 140,000 men including Jackson's 
 army from the valley. This Army from the valley had, 
 in less thaii^ 65 days, almost driven the enemy out of 
 the valley. They came up and whipped the Federals 
 under Cook and Reynolds, at McDowell, then hurried 
 down the valley, driving the enemy before them. Near 
 "Winchester they captured 2,200 prisoners and 4,500 
 wagon loads of commissary and ordnance stores. These 
 he drew along with him and came up fighting the enemy 
 at Cross Keys and badly defeating them. Then, the 
 following day, he met the enemy under Shields at Port 
 Republic, having prevented Fremont and Shields from 
 forming a Junction. If they had succeeded in joining 
 forces they might have beaten Stonewall's army and in 
 that case McClellan would probably have entered Rich- 
 mond. 
 
 The Army Corps commanded by Jackson opened 
 the fight just East of Richmond at Mechanicsville, but 
 instead of Wilcox's division of fresh troops being sent 
 in to open the fight it was begun by some of the worn 
 out and wearied troups of the Valley Army, the same 
 men who had fought and beaten the enemy at Cross 
 Keys and Port Republic. AVhen they got near Rich- 
 mond they were foot sore and weary. They were hur- 
 ried into the Seven Days figliting, beginning in Mechan- 
 icsville and ending at Malvern Hill. McClellan had 
 withdrawn to the shelter of his gun boats. Throughout 
 the Seven Days battle, including Gaine's Mill and 
 Frazier's Farm and ending at Malvern Hill, I served 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 59 
 
 in my brothers place on Stonewall Jackson's staff as a 
 Sargeant of Ordnance and throughout these battles I 
 was kept busy issuing ammunition. Sergt. Wade was 
 the ranking non-commissioned officer and Capt. Hugh 
 Lee, formerly of Clarksburg, and a nephew of Gen. Lee 
 was a Captain and Staff officer with Stonewall. 
 
 Sometimes the Ordnance train was two or three mile* 
 in the rear of the firing line, and sometimes right up 
 against it. We had plenty of chances for being hurt 
 by far reaching minnies or bursting shells. 
 
 Good Generalship 
 
 I have already mentioned that if it had not been 
 for a mistake in orders or for wilful disobedience on 
 the part of one of our commanders, McClellan would 
 have been bottled up following the battle of Malvern Hill 
 and his troops surrounded in the swamps. The action 
 of our officers has always been severely commented 
 on by Officers and privates. Failure to throw a division 
 across McClellan's main avenue of escape permitted 
 MeClellan to get to his gun boats. 
 
 The general opinion, both South and North has 
 been that MeClellan was lacking in Generalship in leav- 
 ing the peninsula as well as in the conduct in the Seven 
 Day battle. But I agree with many of our best military 
 critics in the South, that not only in the disposition 
 and management of his superb army, but also in his 
 masterful retreat he showed that he had the brain of 
 one of the best strategists on the continent. It seems 
 to me that the retreat could not have been better man- 
 aged. 
 
60 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 At Green Springs 
 
 Soon after the last mentioned campaign, Gen. Lee's 
 Army reoceupied their lines in front of Richmond. 
 Jackson moved his army to Green Springs, about 75 
 miles from Richmond in Louisa County. Here he rested 
 and built up his command for about eighteen days. 
 
 It was while the army lay here that I saw my bro- 
 ther Lucius for the last time. He had gotten stronger 
 and had reached our camp the day following the battle 
 of Malvern Hill. He had asked to be relieved from 
 Staff Duty in order that he might go back to his Com- 
 pany. 
 
 I have never believed much in dreams or super- 
 natural warnings. My brother was a very practical 
 man, but he evidently had a strong feeling that he would 
 not survive; the next battle. He confided this to my 
 Aunt Hettie Manly, but requested that she would not 
 tell me. He told me just before the command marched, 
 and the last time I ever saw him, that, "He did not 
 believe the bullet had ever been moulded that would 
 kill him. ' ' But I know now that this was pure bravado, 
 and was said to keep my spirits up. 
 
 On the morning that the battle of Cedar Mountain 
 opened, August 9th, 1862, he told Lieut. Riddleberger, 
 a personal friend of his and some years later a U. S. 
 Senator, that he would be killed in the battle they were 
 just entering. Riddleberger made light of his state- 
 ments, of course not believing in premonitions. He 
 told me later that my brotlier went into the fight with 
 coolness and confidence as though there was so sort of 
 danger. He was at the head of his Company and to 
 
 I 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 61 
 
 all appearances, entirely indifferent. He had been 
 wounded at times previous to this. 
 
 Some hours after the beginning of that hard fight 
 his regiment was sharply engaged with the enemy and 
 was being supported by two new Alabama Regiments, 
 which seemed unable to stem the force of the sttack, 
 so fell back. The enemy then charged the 10th Infantry. 
 It was a terrible situation. The Regiment had to re- 
 tire. Col. Givens and a number of officers were killed. 
 Large numbers of officers and privates were killed and 
 wounded. When the order was given for the Regiment 
 to retreat, my brother probably did not hear it, for he 
 stood in his place firing a short rifle until he was finally 
 shot in the right side and mortally wounded. As he 
 fell he called to the boys not to let the enemy get his 
 body. Capt. Melhom, Lieut. Eliddlebarger and two 
 other men whose names I cannot remember ran back 
 in the face of the enemy's fire and within twenty feet 
 of their line and carried him off the field. 
 
 He was carried to a house about 300 yards from 
 where he fell. He lived about 27 hours, suffering most 
 awfully. The ball had stopped after its course just 
 below the skin. I have the bullet in my possession now. 
 It seems a gruesome thing to keep, but I brought it 
 home after the war and gave it to my mother. Before 
 her death she gave it back to me with the request that 
 I should keep it. 
 
 My Brother 
 
 My brother was as faithful, conscientious and brave 
 a soldier as I ever knew. He was a sincere Christian 
 
62 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 and was not afraid to die. In August, 1862, at the 
 time of his death, he was in his 23rd year. 
 
 He was about four years older than I, and had been 
 a father as well as a brother to me. He kept nothing 
 for himself, but gave without stint, whatever he had 
 that would be of use to me. When I had been appointed 
 to dangerous picket duty he would try to get the oflBcers 
 to let him serve in my place. We always had our purse 
 in common. 
 
 I Tried to be With Him 
 
 I was scarcely able to be about and was still re- 
 cuperating at Uncle Peter Manleys, when I heard the 
 booming of the guns, which announced the battle of 
 Cedar Mountain. 
 
 I knew that my brother would be in this fight and. 
 weak as I was, I determined to go. Of course I did not 
 know the exact point, but I knew that the fight must 
 take place East of the Virginia Central railroad. 
 
 About three o'clock in the afternoon, though 
 scarcely able to sit on a horse, I mounted and rode until 
 eleven o'clock that night. Being unable to stand it any 
 longer, I stopped at a house and asked permission to 
 spend the balance of the night, but met with a decided 
 refusal. I then asked to bring my horse in and lay 
 down in the yard. This was allowed and I rested on 
 the ground until daybreak, when I started on and rode 
 all day until nine p. m. 
 
 I reached the Rapidan river, near Orange Court 
 House and here met Jackson's army retreating from 
 the field. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 63 
 
 I was entirely too exhausted to go any further 
 East, even if I had been permitted. I went to a wheat 
 stack, about 200 yards from the road and, tieing my 
 horse's bridle rein to my foot, lay down to rest. The 
 army was passing by all night. At daylight I went 
 to the road and watched for someone I knew. After 
 a while Capt. Hugh Lee, with whom my brother had 
 served on Jackson's Staff rode by. He told me that 
 he had heard from my brother after the battle and that 
 he was not hurt. I was much encouraged by this state- 
 ment, but waited for my brother's Regiment the 10th 
 Infantry, which was covering the retreat of the army, 
 to come up. Near nine o'clock, I recognized the Regi- 
 ment coming and soon my brother's Company came on, 
 and I knew some of the men and rushed into the line 
 and asked about him. They were strangely silent at 
 first, but finally one of the men told me that he was 
 dead and buried. I could not believe it. Capt. Lee 
 had told me that he was not hurt. I followed along with 
 the men and questioned them until finally and very 
 reluctantly I was forced to accept it as the truth. But 
 for years afterwards I felt almost half of the time he 
 was not dead. 
 
 While on Sick Leave 
 
 About the first of January, 1863, being sick at 
 Uncle Peter Mauley's and unable for field service, I 
 was asked by a Mr. Grant, who operated a large tobacco 
 factory in Columbia, to help him out, by taking the 
 management of the factory temporarily. 
 
 I was not a practical manager, being only a boy, 
 
64 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 and never having governed so large a number of work- 
 men. There about 100 in all. There were all negroes, 
 and all slaves. About half of them boys and men, and 
 the other half women and girls. They made cheap 
 grades of tobacco for the most part. I had charge of 
 the factory for about six weeks. 
 
 At this time the currency of our part of the country 
 was getting to be very bad. On account of the blockad- 
 ing of our ports we could get very little in by sea. 
 Arms and ammunition were only obtained by taking 
 the most fearful risks. Large numbers of men spent 
 all their time in smuggling quinine through the lines. 
 We probably lost thousands of lives in the swamp land 
 of the peninsula for the lack of this drug and so the 
 most strenuous efforts were made to obtain it. 
 
 Running the lines was a very dangerous occupa- 
 tion. To be captured inside of the enemy's lines meant 
 certain death. Often times the men so caught, and shot 
 had run the risk for no other reason than that tliej^ might 
 relieve their suffering comrades. The surgeons in our 
 ho.spitals ran short of quinine and they knew of no other 
 substitute for it. 
 
 About this time I went to LjTichburg and was 
 there for about four weeks, working in a cigar shop 
 to pay my board. 
 
 On a Long Hike 
 
 Learning that General Imboden contemplated a raid 
 into North "West Virginia, and hoping to be able to 
 join it in time, I set out for Staunton, Virginia, though 
 I could get no certain knowledge of where the expedi- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 65 
 
 tion would start and really was not physically able to 
 go, but I was so anxious to see my folks that I started. 
 
 After reaching Staunton I learned that General 
 Imboden was somewhere to the West. The next morn- 
 ing I started out and on reaching Millboro, the terminus 
 of the road, learned that Imboden was still West of 
 there. His movements were uncertain so I pressed on, 
 walking until I got to Lewisburg, nearly 100 miles over 
 the mountains. I was very lame. There I found Im- 
 boden, who had returned from the raid. He had gone 
 as far as Buckhannon. There was some little fighting, 
 a few lost, some prisoners and horses captured but after 
 talking with the General, I judged from his conversation 
 that the expedition was almost barren of results. 
 
 The reason for my wanting to go on the raid was 
 that I might have been able to see my people for a few 
 hours and I could have gotten a good horse. 
 
 Major Lady 
 
 On the train from Staunton and on my way in 
 hunt of Gen. Imboden, I met Maj. John B. Lady. He 
 was a splendid young officer, who had served since the 
 beginning of the war in the Shriver Greys, 27th Virginia 
 Infantry, Stonewall Jackson Brigade. 
 
 At the same time I also met Harry Caton, one of 
 the most delightful young men I have ever known. He 
 had been a member of Hood's 1st Texas Regiment. 
 Harry was dreadfully shot to pieces at the battle of 
 Seven Pines and left on the field for dead. 
 
 I was destined to become very closely associated 
 with the two men above mentioned. 
 
66 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Maj. John B. Lady was just then starting out to 
 form what became the Lady 's Battalion of Cavalry. This 
 Battalion was afterwards enlarged and became the 20th 
 Regiment of Cavalry, commanded by Col. Wm. Arnett, 
 Col. John B. Lady and Maj. Evans. 
 
 I Joined Captain HeiskelPs Company 
 
 Camp was established on Buck Creek, about four 
 miles above the town of Huntersville and was named 
 Camp Northwest. 
 
 At this time. Gen. Wm. Jackson, who had been 
 Colonel of the 31st Virginia Regiment of Infantry, was 
 forming a brigade of cavalry and the 19th Regiment 
 was organized soon after reaching Camp Northwest. 
 Col, Wm. E. Thompson, former Capt. of company A, 
 31st Virginia, was a Colonel. I cannot recall the names 
 of the other field officers. 
 
 I became a member of Capt. Heiskells Company I, 
 a part of Lady's Battalion. I was elected Second Lieut, 
 of this company and my commission came in from the 
 Secretary of War, but strange to say I only served a 
 few days in that capacity. A young man from Monroe 
 County, who was a special friend of some of the officers 
 and men of the regiment, had been very active in form- 
 ing a command and had been promised a commission. 
 Two weeks previous to the election of officers, he had 
 been home and told his family and friends all about the 
 matter, and no doubt posed as an officer. He was utterly 
 disconsolate when he heard how the election had gone. 
 He cried and wept sore about the matter and said he 
 never could go home again. I felt very sorry for him. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 67 
 
 Col. Lady asked me if I eared very much for the place 
 and if I would mind giving it to the sorrowing one. As 
 a matter of fact I cared little or nothing about the 
 position and readily agreed that if the matter could be 
 arranged with the men and with the War Department, 
 I would give him the place. 
 
 I think this young man was the most grateful soul 
 I ever saw. He overwhelmed me with thanks and 
 promised me undying friendship. Poor fellow, he was 
 dreadfully wounded at Droop Mountain and incapacita- 
 ted for further service. 
 
 Recruiting 
 
 The summer of '63 wore away in recruiting, in 
 drilling and in scouting. I think it was in July that 
 I was sent by the Colonel to open a recruiting office in 
 Richmond. I was there five or six weeks. I cannot 
 remember the number of recruits I took into the service, 
 but it was between 30 and 40. A few of these I got 
 in Rockingham County, where I spent about a week. 
 
 While at Harrisonburg, I was sent for by some men 
 at the county jail. I went around there supposing that 
 I would find some old Army acquaintances that had 
 been arrested, but I did not find anyone that I knew. 
 
 About fifteen men belonging to Maj. Harry Gil- 
 more 's command had been caught drunk and the town 
 authorities had arrested them and put them in jail. 
 They all declared they would gladly enlist for three 
 years in the 20th Regiment if I would promise to get 
 them out. The fact is that I did not want them, for 
 more than one reason. They were already mustered 
 
68 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 into the service in Gilmore's Battalion and could easily 
 be arrested and taken from us or they could as easily 
 have deserted and gone back to the old command, and, 
 after looking at them in jail, I did not think that they 
 would add much lustre to the Confederate cause. 
 
 A New Friend 
 
 I made the entire trip from the Valley of Virginia 
 with one of my new recruits by the name of Blain. He 
 was a man about 43 years old, weighed about 215 pounds 
 and had never served as a soldier. This man had an 
 interesting family of a wife and five children and I 
 think they were all girls, the oldest about eighteen. 
 
 When we were at Hightown, before we had gotten 
 to the Regiment, I went into a house and found Blain 
 there under the influence of liquor. He was wild and 
 about fifty men around the house and yard were going 
 to kill him. They said he had made some insulting 
 remarks in the presence of one of the ladies. I had 
 promised to watch and take care of him. I had to 
 shove him ahead of me and turn and keep the fellows 
 back until I got him outside the yard. Blain was very 
 willing to fight, but I kept them off him. After we got 
 outside the fence I persuaded them to let him alone. 
 
 I might say right here that Blain did not live a 
 year, but it was whiskey that killed him and not an 
 enemy bullet. 
 
 On my way from Richmond after I got to Rock- 
 ingham County, Blain and I came "West together to 
 Hightown. He had a very good horse and I had none, 
 so we "rode and tied", I had sent the other men on 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 69 
 
 before us in squads of from four to eight as rapidly as 
 we could get them ready to start to the command. 
 
 At Monterey Again 
 
 When I reached Monterey, court was in session. 
 There were a great many people in town and a con- 
 siderable number of soldiers scattered about on leave 
 of absense. I had a friend there John Seybert of our 
 old regiment. His father kept the principal hotel in 
 the town and John was home on furlough. I rode up 
 in front of the hotel to speak to John, but did not in- 
 tend to dismount. He insisted that I get down and eat 
 dinner with him. It was 12 :30 and I was always hungry, 
 but, for some reason or other, I declined. I never knew 
 why I did, but I started on. When I got up on the 
 side of the mountain and looked back on the town, 2000 
 Federal Cavalry had swooped down on the town and 
 captured it. They came in unexpectedly, captured the 
 town and the court and scattered soldiers and citizens 
 almost without any resistance. I have never known any 
 good reason for my not stopping with John for dinner, 
 but if I had done so I would surely have been captured 
 or maybe killed or wounded. 
 
 A Run for the Gap 
 
 I hurried on over to Hightown and found my Regi- 
 ment under Col. Arnett in camp there. When I left 
 the camp a month before this time they were at Camp 
 Northwest on Buck Creek, three miles from Hunters- 
 ville, the county seat of Pocahontas County and 18 miles 
 from Little Levels. Between Monterey and Hightown 
 
70 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 there is a mountain six miles across. It lays between 
 the two and the only available crossing is a gap. The 
 Federal Commander at Monterey knew that Col. Arnett 
 was at Hightown with 500 men and if he could get to 
 this gap first and cross and get in Arnett 's rear he ought 
 to be able to capture the whole command. 
 
 The Federals started for the gap as hard as they 
 could go. They were probably 30 minutes ahead of us, 
 but as soon as Arnett saw the situation he ordered the 
 command to make the best run they could in order to 
 beat the enemy to the gap. 
 
 I think we galloped about six miles along the "West 
 side of the mountain, while the enemy was coming down 
 the East side of the mountain to the gap. We beat 
 them to it and got away from them, but they came 
 through the gap that night and the next day followed 
 us down Buck Creek and in the afternoon we had a 
 sharp fight with them. 
 
 After Deserters 
 
 While we were at Camp Northwest, Col. Lady sent 
 for me one evening and told me that he had ordered 
 Lieut. Steve Rice and mj^self to go that night up to 
 the summit of the Alleghany mountain and catch and 
 bring back six deserters. He thought that, as they were 
 on foot, we might intercept them before they reached 
 the summit of the mountain. To be plain about it, I 
 did not like the job, for four of these men were old 
 Louisiana Tigers who had joined after the Tigers were 
 disbanded. I could not decline the honor, although we 
 both expected to be shot from ambush as we went up 
 the mountain. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 11 
 
 We reached the mountain top about 10:00 o'clock 
 at night. The pickets said that they had neither seen 
 or heard anything of our men. After waiting an hour 
 we started back and when we reached camp, found 
 that the deserters had decided to return to camp and 
 had gotten back there before we did. 
 
 These Tigers were bad men in almost every way 
 and averse to any kind of discipline, but they could 
 always be depended on in a scrap to do the most des- 
 perate and fool-hardy things that could be thought of. 
 
 A Bad Ford 
 
 Following the gallop we made with Col. Arnett 
 to reach the pass before the enemy reached it, we had 
 almost a day of skirmishing with the same force that 
 had followed us from just below Hightown. 
 
 Late in the evening and when we were about 14 
 miles from Camp Northwest, Blain and I turned off 
 the road to the left to find something to eat and a bed 
 to sleep in if we could. 
 
 Two or three miles away we found a very good 
 place to stay and not only a good bed but an excellent 
 and plentiful supply of food. I think I never have 
 eaten more greedily than I did that night and next 
 morning. There was a great rain during the night and 
 next morning the creek banks were full. About three 
 or four miles from where we staid all night we came 
 to a ford. I was riding Blain 's horse and he went on 
 down the creek to a foot bridge which was in sight. I 
 rode boldly into the creek not knowing that the ground 
 had been washed out of the road under the water at 
 
72 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 the ford, and the second/ step my horse took into the 
 water he went over his head and almost turned a sum- 
 mersault. I was in a great torrent of water and was 
 washed down fifty feet below the ford under a great 
 bank in a whirlpool. I remember that the horse turned 
 around in the pool three times before he could force 
 his way out into the stream again. Finally we got 
 out and made a landing on the other side. "We were 
 soon joined by Blain. By this time I had taken a 
 violent; case of colic and I know that for about eight 
 hours my suffering was greater than I have ever ex- 
 perienced in my life. My friend held me on the horse 
 for one-third of a mile by which time we came to a very 
 good farm house. This house had its gable to the road, 
 but a long porch on the East side. Blain was going to 
 take me in and lay me on the porch, but a middle aged 
 woman came out and insisted that I should not come 
 in the yard even, that I had small pox (my face was 
 very red.) My friend took me on the porch in spite 
 of what the woman said and laid me down and then 
 started to Camp, which was about eight miles, for the 
 surgeon of my regiment and an ambulance. 
 
 I suppose I laid on the porch about an hour with- 
 out any attention when a grand-daughter of the house 
 came over on an errand and spied me lying there. The 
 old lady forbid her going near me and told her she was 
 sure I had small pox^ but the girl said to her. "It 
 would be a shame to let one of our soldiers die here 
 without giving all the attention we can." The young 
 lady was a stout, good-looking girl, about eighteen years 
 of age She put her hands under my arms after raising 
 my head and clasped her hands under my neck and 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 73 
 
 dragged me in the house to the hearth of a big fire 
 place. She soon had a great fire burning, had me wrap- 
 ped up in blankets and was giving me several kinds of 
 hot tea and continued to bring me to life. The Surgeon 
 and nurse reached me about four o'clock. I was very 
 much easier. I think without any doubt the young 
 lady saved my life. 
 
 After reaching camp it was several days before I 
 was able to walk about. 
 
 Not long after this and while we were still at Camp 
 Northwest, I learned that about 25 of our fellows from 
 Harrison County had just run the blockade and had 
 come to join us. 
 
 I got myself appointed to go down to Little Levels, 
 eighteen miles below, to meet and bring the boys into 
 camp. There was, as I remember, just eighteen. Among 
 these men was a notable man from Wood county, about 
 Parkersburg. He was a large, heavy man and weighed 
 about 240 pounds. These men were a part of the force 
 brought through the lines by Maj. Armsby, of Harrison 
 county and who became the Maj. of the 17th Virginia 
 Cavalry. Armsby was soon after this captured and 
 sentenced to death as a spy. 
 
 In some matters that occurred in 1864, I will tell 
 how it came about that the Major was released. 
 
 Trying to Get Back Home 
 
 Some time after the battle of Droop Mountain, 
 
 the command came back to Camp Northwest. I went 
 
 to Gen. "W. L. Jackson and obtained permission to make 
 
 ( a scout as far west as Harrison county, where my father 
 
PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 lived. I agreed to take nine men with me and get them 
 mounts on the trip. 
 
 Harry Caton, m}' old friend of the 1st Texas regi- 
 ment was one of the men and the one I depended upon 
 more than any of the others. He was a Wheeling boy 
 and some three years before the war had gone to Texas 
 and served in the Rangers for some time. When the 
 war came on he was in Mexico City but immediately 
 came back to Texas and joined Col. John B. Hood's 
 1st regiment and went to Virginia. I think I menti- 
 oned this before. 
 
 He had been spending the night before the battle 
 of Seven Pines in Richmond, but early on the morning 
 of the fight he went down to camp and finding that the 
 regiment had moved forward toward the enemy, he 
 hastened on and arrived just as they were lining up 
 for the fray. He had not intended to see Col. Hood 
 just then, but unexpectedly ran into the head of the 
 command just as they were deploying. The Col. rec- 
 ognized him at once and spoke sharply to him about 
 being awaj' without leave. Harry made the best excuse 
 he could and asked permission to take part in this little 
 tea party. 
 
 That day he was fearPully wounded, being shot 
 in the breast and side. He was half mile from the road, 
 when wounded, and after some hours he realized that 
 he would die there or bleed to death before being found. 
 He crawled through the brii^h and the woods suffering 
 horribly until he reached a place where he could see 
 or hear the wagons hauling the wounded off. 
 
 He finally attracted attention and was carried to 
 the field hospital, but when the surgeons saw him they 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 
 
 declined to dress his wounds, because they felt his case 
 was hopeless and they had only time to give attention 
 to men who might recover. Caton insisted that he would 
 get well and finally had his wounds dressed. He was 
 soon on the way to recovery and was sent up the James 
 river where he got strong again. 
 
 He was one of the bravest men I ever knew, a 
 natural-born getntlemazi, kind and generous. I met 
 him in the Spring of '63 as I have already mentioned 
 and we became fast friends, so I got permission to go 
 on this scout in order to see the home folks and inciden- 
 tally to find some horses for the men, and I took Caton 
 with me. We left Little Levels and were gone a month 
 and five days. 
 
 Incidents of the Trip 
 
 I will only mention a few of the incidents of our 
 trip. The whole trip had plenty of action and excite- 
 ment about it. I might say now that we lost two of 
 our number, captured, we supposed. 
 
 In Lewis and Harrison Counties we were compelled 
 to separate, though Harry and I stayed together except 
 for five days once when I was sick and had a high 
 fever. 
 
 I had a map of the roads in two or three counties 
 and they were quite intelligible to us. The principal 
 roads were marked showing us the houses of Southern 
 people and also a different mark on Union houses. Of 
 course we were obliged to keep off the roads for the 
 most part but we kept in sight of them. 
 
 On one occasion, we had crossed a tall mountain 
 and left the road a long way on our right, as we sup- 
 
76 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 posed, but when we got over the mountam in sight of 
 the valley and road we could not determine where we 
 were. We saw a large farm house one half mile below 
 us, but could not tell from our maps who lived there, 
 nor whether it would be safe to go down. 
 
 It was my turn to go and find out. I took off my 
 uniform jacket and left my short cavalry rifle with 
 Caton. When I started down I had on an old straw 
 hat, pants and shirt, the pants held up by a pair of 
 yarn galluses. I am sure I looked green enough. I 
 went in the back way and found a woman churning. 
 She was a very intelligent looking person and I felt 
 that she was suspicious of men the instant she saw me. 
 She inquired who I was and where I lived. I told her 
 I worked for Mr. Smith on the other side of the moun- 
 tain and that he had sent me down to the mouth of this 
 creek to bring back a steer. The woman looked sharply 
 at me and I knew that I was under suspicion. She told 
 the girl to give me a cup of water, then told me to go 
 out the way I came in, to go down the meadow and 
 then cross over to the big road. I started, but decided 
 to go up the hill the way I came. She called to me in 
 a minute or two and asked me why I didn't go the way 
 she told me. I told her that I thought the other way 
 was closer. I am sure that she thought that I was a 
 green boy and it didn't matter. 
 
 I started again and went by the way of the front 
 porch, the very thing I did not want to do. I found 
 that on that porch sat two Yankee soldiers in uniform. 
 However I was in for it and I slouched along across 
 the yard and they did not speak to me. I thought at 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 77 
 
 the time that it was a close shave, for I had no arms 
 to defend myself with but they happened not to suspect 
 me. 
 
 Two nights before this incident we stopped in front 
 of a large farm house and we knew the man who lived 
 there was named Wilson, a friend. It was about 1 :30 
 A. M. and the moon was shining brightly. I went up 
 on the porch and tapped on the window several times 
 before anyone answered. At last a rough voice called 
 from an upper window to know who we were and what 
 we wanted. We finally persuaded him down stairs and 
 talked with him some time, but could not convince him 
 that we were all 0. K. He told us we could go down 
 to the barn and stay until morning, when he would 
 come down and take a look at us and if he could help 
 us he would. The fact of the matter was it was a ground 
 hog case with us, we had to have assistance from him. 
 We were finally forced to go to the barn and burro 
 down in a haymow to keep warm. The next morning 
 about sunrise, Mr. Wilson came down to the barn floor 
 accompanied by two dogs. He wanted us to get down 
 on the floor quickly. This we did and he looked us over 
 critically. The dogs in the meantime appeared very 
 friendly to us. Finally he said, ''come on up to the 
 house to breakfast, I am satisfied you are alright, if 
 you were Yankees I couldn't keep those dogs off you." 
 We had a good breakfast and went up the hollow and 
 laid under the trees until dinner. 
 
 After dinner we got our bearings and went to the 
 top of the ridge or mountain between the two small 
 valleys. We were to follo^v the ridge about eight miles 
 to near the mouth of Hacker's Creek. About four 
 
7S PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 o'clock we decided that we had tramped far enough to 
 have found this creek, but, as a matter of fact we were 
 lost and did not know where we were. 
 
 It was at this time that I went down in the valley 
 and had the experience, disguised as a farmer boy, as 
 before mentioned. 
 
 After I had taken the route that the woman had 
 pointed out to me, through the front yard, I went on 
 to the road and down about a mile and crossed over 
 making a long detour and reached my friend Caton 
 again. 
 
 My Father's House 
 
 We reached a house of a friend of the South about 
 eleven o'clock that night. We had little difficulty in 
 convincing him as to who we were and after a hearty 
 meal with him and his family he brought out a couple 
 of horses and took us several miles on our road and 
 within about six or seven miles of my father's house. 
 
 We reached father's house about three o'clock A. 
 M. He lived about a half mile from a little place called 
 Johnstown. There were some 200 Yankees camping 
 as close to the town as my father's house. They were 
 not regular soldiers, but belonged to a set of men that 
 were mean and cowardly in the extreme. They were 
 not looking for soldiers to oppose, but sought every op- 
 portunity to abuse women and children or helpless and 
 crippled men. Thej'- often arrested such as these, took 
 them to Clarksburg, appeared before the commandant 
 preferring usually trumped up charges and had the 
 poor victims sent to camp Chase. 
 
 1 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 79 
 
 In this county of Harrison, a large number of 
 people who were not guilty of any wrong doing, lost 
 their lives from the inhuman treatment accorded by 
 the Home Guards. 
 
 I remember the incidents of this home coming as 
 well as if it had occurred only yesterday. 
 
 There was a beautiful September moon shining 
 in all its cloudless brilliancy. We went very quietly, 
 my comrade Caton and I, but when we had reached 
 the barn, only about one hundred yards from the house, 
 my dog Tige set up a furious barking. I knew his voice. 
 This was the only dog I ever owned and the only one 
 I was ever fond of. He was a white bull dog. I called 
 in a low voice to the dog and after a short time he rec- 
 ognized me. I never have known an animal to exhibit 
 as much joy as he did when he found out who I was. 
 
 "We finally went up to the house and I went to the 
 door and knocked. I heard father and mother talking, 
 she evidently trying to keep him from going to the door. 
 Finally as I was persistent in wanting to get in, father 
 got up and asked again, "who is there, what is your 
 name?" I asked him if he had a son in the army and 
 told him that I brought a message from him. Just then 
 my mother said, ' ' Oh ! it is Henry. ' ' She knew my 
 voice. 
 
 I got in the house. They made no light because 
 some soldiers were around the house an hour before and 
 they were afraid. 
 
 My brother George, was about 17 years old at this 
 time, he surprised me by running in and calling to me, 
 "Henry, are you a deserter?" I said that I was not. 
 Then he said, "If you are there is the door, we don't 
 
so PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 want a deserter in this house." The reason he said 
 this was that a good many fellows in the county had 
 gotten tired and discouraged in the Southern army and 
 had come back home and taken the oath of allegiance 
 to the U. S. Government. This they were obliged to do 
 or go to prison. 
 
 An Unusual Introduction 
 
 I greeted all the family most heartily and among 
 them a young lady, Miss Mary Fox, who was teaching 
 school in the village and boarding at father's house. 
 She was a Southern girl, a native of Culpeper County, 
 Virginia, the daughter of a widow then living a few 
 miles from Johntown. She had a brother, Mr. T. S. 
 Fox, in the 17th Virginia Cavalry. This lady became 
 my wife after the war in the fall of 1866, October 7th. 
 
 We have often laughed about my kissing her among 
 others at home, before I ever saw her. 
 
 In a few minutes my mother asked me where my 
 brother Lucius was. I then realized that she did not 
 know of his death, which had taken place more than a 
 year before in the battle of Cedar Mountain. She had 
 at different times heard of the death of both of us, but 
 did not know that my brother had actually fallen. 
 
 We slept about three or four hours in a thicket of 
 trees not far from the house and my father came in the 
 morning and brought out breakfast. We stayed there 
 several days and nights, but never sleeping in the house 
 and seldom spending an hour there because they were 
 constantly watched and it would have meant prison or 
 death for the whole family if we had been found there. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 81 
 
 Miss Fox, who is uow my wife, made me a pair 
 of pants and father had me a pair of excellent boots 
 made and in other ways my wardrobe was improved 
 and we were well rested and better able for our trip 
 back to "Dixie". We were about 150 miles from our 
 lines. The children at home were all old enough to 
 be told who I was but one, Nellie about four years old. 
 She understood me to be Mr. Jones from Clarksburg. 
 
 The night came for us to leave and Harry and I 
 determined to eat supper with the family about 10:30. 
 We had a delicious supper, but I had very little appe- 
 tite, but at last the good bye and God Speeds were said 
 and we started. We were compelled to tramp through 
 the woods and fields so as to avoid meeting people. 
 
 In a Nest of Yankees 
 
 One incident that occurred about two weeks before 
 we went to my father's house, I think is worth telling. 
 Up in Lewis County near the edge of Webster, was a 
 family by the name of St. John. We had their name 
 on paper or map as good people for us to see. The 
 father was dead, the only son was in our army in the 
 19th Cavalry. 
 
 The family at this time consisted of the mother 
 and two daughters. Before reaching their place, my 
 friend Caton, had gone down near Milford and was 
 taken sick. A sympathizer was taking care of him. I 
 was up in the St. John's neighborhood, being in the 
 great hollow of a burnt out poplar tree. I could not 
 afford to ask them to keep me at the house because there 
 was too much chance of being discovered. The Federals 
 
82 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 had at this time 1000 or 1500 men camped within two 
 miles of the St. John's home. I was taken sick with 
 some kind of fever and was very bad. Both of the St. 
 Johns girls came up in the woods and brought me food 
 and bed cover and later such medicine as their mother 
 thought might help me. 
 
 I was there sick about six days. I began to feel 
 much better and was so awfully lonesome there in the 
 woods by myself, I was willing to risk almost anything 
 to be with human beings again. About sundown one 
 evening, when I was feeling this way, I slipped down 
 through the woods and crosed the road and went to the 
 barn. Mrs. St. John had seen me in the barn yard 
 and as two soldiers had just called there to stay all 
 night she slipped down to tell me to hide, as these men 
 would soon be at the barn to put their horses away. 
 
 They came down and fed their horses, I being 
 in another part of the barn and very careful to not 
 discover myself to them. 
 
 About 9 :00 o 'clock, I went up to the house and 
 looking in the window could see none but the ladies. 
 I decided that these soldiers had gone to bed and I 
 walked in to the sitting room. The ladies were fright- 
 ened at my coming in. They were afraid the soldiers 
 would come out in the room and finding me there, make 
 trouble. 
 
 I sat with the folks about one and one half hours 
 and then went to bed in the room next to where these 
 soldiers were sleeping, but they never suspected my 
 presence. I remained in bed until after these men had 
 breakfasted and left the place next morning. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 83 
 
 In a couple of days after this I got with Harry 
 again and made the visit home, as I have already told. 
 
 After leaving home, in a couple of nights we had 
 gone into the upper part of Lewis county and not far 
 from the head waters of Hackers Creek. 
 
 Harry and I separated for a few days, about this 
 time. He went a few miles from me to stay with a 
 southerner who had invited him, and I was for several 
 days about one mile from the farm house, where I had 
 gone to seek information about our road. The woman's 
 sons were still at home on furlough for I saw them both, 
 although I did not think it necessary to tell them I was 
 there watching them. 
 
 When we first came into Upshur or Lewis counties, 
 I can't remember which, we mounted six of the eight 
 men we had with us. Two of the men were either cap- 
 tured or deserted, we never knew which. I wanted the 
 men we had brought from Camp mounted and sent back 
 before we went into Harrison County to see my father. 
 The six men we sent back arrived safely in camp some- 
 time before we did. I was the guest of an excellent 
 fellow, who fed me well and watched for me around 
 the thicket where I was hidden. This would have been 
 much more lonesome and trying to me, but fortunately 
 my host had some confidential friends, who wanted to 
 hear from some of the boys in our army, and he brought 
 them to me. 
 
 Finally Harry and I communicated with each 
 other, agreed to leave for dixie on a certain night. At 
 the same time a man by the name of Rinehart had seen 
 us once and later sent us word he wanted to go with 
 us to Dixie. I had arranged for my horse, which was 
 
84 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 in fact a beautiful browu mare. I went after her about 
 8 :30 in the evening. I went to the place where the two 
 soldiers were on a furlough. All the family seemed 
 to be boiling sugar cane. The man I had with me went 
 into the meadow within twenty-five yards of the group 
 at the fire. 
 
 "Borrowing" a Horse 
 
 I do not now and have never defended the mor- 
 ality of this act of mine except on the ground of neces- 
 sity. We were almost literally surrounded by enemies 
 at this time, we were about 135 miles from our lines 
 and I think the chances for our escape from them de- 
 pended almost solely on the horse that I borrowed of 
 that farmer. 
 
 I can truthfully assert in addition that I never took 
 anything of value from a non-combatant except in this 
 case. 
 
 After getting my horse I rode her bareback about 
 three quarters of a mile to a place where I found Caton 
 and Rinehart, both of them well mounted. Rinehart 
 had been hurried almost to death for six weeks, running 
 from one cover to another to escape capture. I should 
 have said that in going to our rendezvous, I had gotten 
 into the main road about one half mile from the place 
 where Caton was staying. Just before reaching the 
 front of the house I heard horsemen on a trot meeting 
 me. I could not afford to be captured, but I could not 
 turn and ride away, because I did not know where the 
 road would take me and I feared I would meet people 
 I didn't want to see. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 85 
 
 The barn stood between the house and the road. 
 Instead of a big gate there were old fashioned bars open- 
 ing to the road and knowing that in another minute I 
 would meet these men, the only safe thing to do was 
 to get through into the barnyard thence into the meadow 
 at the other end of which behind a clump of willows 
 I was to find Caton and Rinehart. My mare jumped 
 the bars without any difficulty. Before I was out of 
 the barn yard the men behind me either didn't care 
 to make the jump or decided to let me run down the 
 meadow and catch me when I would attempt to come 
 out in the road at the lower end of the meadow. 
 
 I galloped down to the willows and finding the 
 men ready, we hastened back and went through the 
 bars and started South. Pretty soon the Federals found 
 we had taken a turn on them. They about faced and 
 followed. About a mile from the barn we turned sharp- 
 ly to the left, but they continued to follow us. A mile 
 farther on we turned off the road to the right and struck 
 the mountain trail. 
 
 Getting Back to Our Lines 
 
 I have never known a man who was so good a 
 woodsman as Harry Caton. The night had become 
 dark and it was raining and we were following a mere 
 trail. There was scarcely a path across the mountain, 
 and yet this man seemed instinctively to know the way. 
 The enemy was still following us, but I think on this 
 mountain trail they were moving more slowly than we 
 were. 
 
 A few miles from where we struck the trail, w« 
 ran into a big tree that had fallen across the path. 
 
PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Caton was riding in front. He dismounted and felt 
 his way to me and gave me his bridle while he scouted 
 around the tree to try to locate the trail. It was so 
 dark that I could see nothing, but in about fifteen 
 minutes Harry came back and reported that he had 
 found the trail. About seven o'clock the next morning 
 we found ourselves in front of a raging little river that 
 had been swollen by recent rains until it could not 
 be forded. 
 
 We held a council of war and decided that the 
 Yankees would in all probability be there in less than 
 one half an hour and we thought it safer to swim rather 
 than to risk a fight with them as there were too many 
 of them. We plunged our horses into the river and 
 finally succeeded in landing on the southern bank con- 
 siderably below where we started in. 
 
 We were then in a wild mountainous part of Up- 
 shur or Webster county, I could not be certain which 
 it was. We felt little fear of being pursued further 
 than the river we had crossed as we believed they would 
 not follow us until the water had gone down. W^ 
 learned also in the community that morning that there 
 was no big body of J'ederal soldiers in that part of the 
 state, so we rode boldly along the public road toward the 
 western line of Pocahontas County. 
 
 We found our horses pretty much jaded before 
 one o'clock but we rested them some and got some food 
 for them early in the afternoon. We were in very good 
 shape except that my mare was barefooted and began 
 to go lame on me. I took part of the old quilt on which 
 I was riding, cut off pieces and bound up her feet. They 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 
 
 were worn and almost bleeding. This had to be repeat- 
 ed many times before we reached camp. 
 
 We felt considerably worried about three o'clock 
 when we heard that a band of about a dozen Yankees 
 were at the foot of the mountain some fifteen miles in 
 front of us and over which we were compelled to pass. 
 We found that these fellows were not soldiers but a 
 band of robbers, being deserters from both the Union 
 and Confederate armies, banded together for robbery 
 and murder. 
 
 A Band of Robbers 
 
 We stopped about five o'clock at the house of a 
 friendly family and they insisted that we go back be- 
 cause we could not hope to pass these robbers without 
 losing our horses and money and possibly our lives. We 
 got some supper and fed our horses and planned what 
 we should do the next morning. Rinehart's horse had 
 cast a shoe and as there was no blacksmith except right 
 at the foot of the mountain we were in a quandary as 
 to what to do. 
 
 We finally decided to ride up there in the morning 
 and Caton and I would dismount leaving our horses 
 outside the fence and we would go up to the house and 
 entertain these fellows as best we could until Rinehart 
 would signal us he was ready. Then we were to leave 
 if we could. 
 
 I had a short cavalry rifle and a knife, Harry had 
 a short rifle and a pistol. Rinehart had a splendid 
 pistol which I tried to get but he could not be persuaded. 
 Wlien we came near the house which set back about a 
 
88 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 hundred yards from the road we saw four men walking 
 about on the green in front of the huse. We knew that 
 we could not afford to pass without stopping so when we 
 came to the gate we told Rinehart to go on to the shop 
 and have his work done and we would go up and see 
 the boys and be ready when he was. 
 
 We then dismounted, threw our bridle reins over 
 a couple of fence posts and walked in and spoke to these 
 fellows in a very jocular manner. They evidently were 
 not expecting this sort of greeting. They doubtless 
 knew in what reputation they were held and expected 
 us to be scared (which we were). The morning was 
 beautiful. We thought it was safe to venture a few 
 pleasant remarks about the weather. It was the only 
 topic which we could think of at the moment to speak 
 about. We talked in just a casual and easy way though 
 we did not feel easy. I thought then and do yet that 
 I never saw a meaner looking set of men. They were 
 large and well dressed and were literally walking arsen- 
 als. None of them carried less than two pistols and 
 some of them three, and each man had a big gun and a 
 knife. And more than that they looked like they knew 
 how to use them. 
 
 They evidently did not know what to make of us. 
 Anxious to know how many there were of them alto- 
 gether I carelessly remarked that I would step in the 
 house awhile and get some more breakfast. I turned 
 with quite a swagger and went up to the house and 
 found four of the party at breakfast. They were just 
 as mean looking as the other three and were just as well 
 armed. Just as I entered the door I took an inventory 
 of the men an^ remarked pleasantly "hello boys". Al- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 
 
 most before they had time to speak a woman came in 
 bringing one of the men a cup of coffee. I immediately 
 reached the table and picked up the cup of coffee before 
 the man had a chance to get it. I remarked as I picked 
 it up that I thought I would like a cup of coffee as my 
 breakfast had been rather light. 
 
 I never saw a man look more surprised and they 
 all looked in wonder at one another and then at me. 
 They all got angry and left the table. Seeing that they 
 were going out of doors I got out of the door, meantime 
 blowing about having killed three Yankees that week 
 and that I was mighty fond of the sport and that the 
 boys with me liked it wonderfully well themselves. 
 
 I had now found out how many there were of them, 
 seven. Both of us knew they were too many for us 
 even if we had been as well armed as they were. We 
 also knew that we could not count on Rinehart and be- 
 sides he was more than a hundred yards away at the 
 blacksmiths, and we had no way of knowing whether the 
 blacksmith was for us or against us. 
 
 There seemed nothing else for us to do but bluff 
 these robbers and we did it. We invented marvelous 
 stories of fights we were having every day. It worked. 
 I suppose that those fellows decided that if they at- 
 tempted to kill us and take our horses some of their 
 number would be killed. We kept on bragging and 
 watching for Einehart to signal that he was ready. We 
 were getting very tired and running out of stories, and 
 we did not know what moment those fellows might de- 
 cide to begin shooting. Finally, much to our relief we 
 saw Rinehart 's signal. We knew that when we started 
 
90 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 away it would be the crucial moment and we felt anxi- 
 ous to have it over. 
 
 We did not exactly back out of the yard but we 
 talked jovially all the time moving slowly toward the 
 gate. When we had gotten through and mounted our 
 horses we started off laughing and calling back to them 
 as though we were enjoying ourselves hugely, which 
 we were'nt. To our great surprise they did not attempt 
 to stop us. We found Rinehart ready and mounted and 
 we were very glad to leave. 
 
 I have often thought of this circumstance and be- 
 lieve so far as personal danger was concerned, I have 
 never experienced a worse situation than this one. I 
 think our bravado and apparent unconcern helped us 
 somewhat, but undoubtedly we were taken care of and 
 protected by kind providence. These men were lawless, 
 were deserters, and were known as the worst type of 
 robbers. We were told that they did not hesitate to 
 commit murder yet we made our escape without a 
 scratch. 
 
 Our return to camp occupied about two and one 
 half days and was a hard and laborious trip for our 
 horses and ourselves. We were almost, famished for food 
 before we reached the Little Levels, and our horses were 
 tired out and weak for lack of food and their feet were 
 so sore that they were bleeding. 
 
 In a couple of weeks after our return to camp, 
 Harry Caton received word from his sister in Wheeling 
 to come to that city. He got permission to make an- 
 other scout into West Virgijiia. He was of a very ad- 
 venturous disposition and he went alone. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 91 
 
 We know very little as to what happened to him 
 before his capture (for he was captured) and almost 
 nothing as to what occurred afterwards. 
 
 He wrote a short letter to Miss Mary J. Fox, from 
 Wheeling. It seems that he went to Wheeling to see 
 his sister who was the wife of the Sheriff of the county. 
 Then he went to Cincinnati and back by steamer. He 
 started from Wheeling south and somewhere about 
 Romney he was captured and sent to prison at Point 
 Lookout. He was then carried to Fortress Monroe on 
 the last vessel of exchanged prisoners before the war 
 ended. 
 
 I was near Richmond at the time and confidently 
 expected to see him but did not. I advertised for him 
 and tried every means in my power to find him but could 
 not. He was a gallant gentleman and as good a soldier 
 as I ever knew. 
 
 A circumstance occurred when the whole party of 
 ten of us were together on my trip into Harrison Coun- 
 ty, detailed above. When we were in Webster County, 
 we passed through the County seat one day, but the 
 only building was the Court House' built of rails and 
 small poles, a temporary building erected for the Court 
 after the burning of the little town. 
 
 This was the only instance I have ever known of 
 the entire destruction of a town either big or little. I 
 think it was on the same day we passed through Web- 
 ster Court House that we found night very close upon 
 us and it was raining and we were all wet and muddy 
 and hungry and no place to stay. We came to a settlers 
 house of about three rooms and several in the family. 
 I asked if we could stay all night and get our suppers. 
 
92 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 They told us they did not have any bread and if we 
 would grate the meal, from the new corn they would 
 make the bread. Several of the boys went to work 
 and in the course of an hour we had plenty of meal. 
 
 They baked as good broad at that house as I ever 
 ate. I don't remember what else they had, but I do 
 remember that we had a delicious meal and the principal 
 thing we had was corn bread made from the new corn. 
 
 New Recruits 
 
 A short time after our return from this scout, we 
 were told that M'aj. Thomas Armsby had just come 
 through to the Levels bringing two or three hundred 
 men to join different commands of our Army. I went 
 down to meet them and quite a number of the men came 
 up with me and joined the 19th and 20th Cavalry. 
 
 Among these new recruits was a large splendid 
 fellow by name of John Hammat, from Wood County 
 on the Ohio River. He was a large man weighing about 
 250 pounds then. He and I became friends soon after 
 he joined us. He was a gcod man and a trusty and 
 faithful soldier. We lived neighbors after the war for 
 many years. 
 
 Soon after these men joined us, we moved to the 
 east side of the Alleghany Mountains and about 13 miles 
 from Huntersville. 
 
 The commanding officer ordered 18 men sent on a 
 scout down to Huntersville to feel out the enemy and 
 find out how strong he was. This was a volunteer scout 
 and I was in it. My horse had a sore back and I found 
 one of the boys that had a good horse and expected 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 93 
 
 to go on the scout. I told him if he would take my 
 horse and stay with the wagon train if they moved; 
 that I would take good care of his horse on the trip. 
 He agreed and we made r. temporary trade. We were 
 commanded by a Captain and a Lieut, though there was 
 another man, a Lieut. Williams with us. He went 
 simply as a soldier in the party. My friend John Ham- 
 mat was one of the eighteen. 
 
 Hunting for Trouble 
 
 We arrived at our old Camp Northwest, on Buck 
 Creek, three miles from Huntersville, without incident 
 worth mentioning. At that point five men were sent 
 forward and ordered to go on until we found the Fed- 
 erals. I was one of the five sent forward. The road 
 was down a gorge and was very narrow, with the river 
 or Buck Creek on one side often ten feet to the water 
 and sometimes only* three feet. On the other side of 
 the road was a steep bank. The understanding was 
 that thirteen were to remain at Camp Northwest, as 
 a reserve. The three commissioned officers remained 
 with the reserve. 
 
 We had gone perhaps one and a half miles down 
 the gorge and had neither seen nor heard anything 
 of the enemy, when we came to a sharp turn in the 
 road. I was very tired and I dismounted and threw 
 the bridle rein over my horses head and sat down on 
 a log that was beside the road. I had no sooner struck 
 the log than I heard a pistol crack and thundering of 
 horses feet coming round the turn. I sprang on my 
 horse as soon as possible, but our boys had passed me 
 
94 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 and by the time I started back the Federal Cavalry 
 were very close to me. We had a hard race for a mile 
 and then suddenly met our reserves in that narrow road 
 with their horses toward us. Of course it was confus- 
 ing and difficult for them to get their horses turned 
 and get out of the way and very valuable time was lost 
 which gave the enemy time to be almost on us before 
 we were nearly out of the narrow road and where the 
 bank was only about three feet to the water. My horse 
 struck a shelving rock in the road and went over the 
 bank into the water. He landed on his feet however. 
 Fearful of being killed or captured, I made every effort 
 to get back into the road and urging him with spur 
 and rein I lifted him for the spring into the road, which 
 he made reaching just a little in front of the oncoming 
 cavalry. I thought for a minute or two I was a "goner", 
 because they were so close they were striking at me with 
 their sabres and firing all the time. Near this point 
 the road ran into the creek, and for one hundred yards 
 the road was in the creek. The splashing of the water 
 was such that I couldn't see very well, but I found at 
 one point a horse which had been shot down and 
 the rider Lieut. Williams struggling to keep his head 
 above water. One of his legs had been caught under 
 the horse. I feared my horse would fall over the man 
 and horse and I urged him and he made the jump 
 lengthwise of the animal and never touched him. 
 
 We soon turned out of the creek and seventy-five 
 yards further away came to a small bridge thrown over 
 a little stream that poured into the creek. On this 
 little bridge two horses had gone down in front of me. 
 Mv horse cleared them both and I began to think I 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 95 
 
 could get away. One of the men who had lost his 
 horse at the little bridge was running and he called 
 to me to take him up. I could not. Had I paused to 
 take him up, we would both have been captured or 
 killed. 
 
 T was now bearing to the left toward a little hill 
 where I could see a few of our men had gathered. I 
 reached the hill and found the Captain and a few men 
 there. As soon as I got up we began firing and held 
 them off for perhaps twenty minutes. I suppose I had 
 only fired half a dozen times when the lock of my cav- 
 alry rifle broke and I could not use it. We were obliged 
 to rein our horses ovei* the brow of the hill and load, 
 then move quickly on the ridge and fire, reining the 
 horses back again while we loaded. There was a con- 
 siderable number of the enemy, probably 300, right in 
 front of us at the hill. As soon as my gun had broken 
 I pushed up on the ridge and remained there while the 
 fight lasted. I could not afford to stay over the ridge 
 even if my gun was broken. I have always been glad 
 that it happened that way because I had nothing to do 
 but watch the enemy. 
 
 There was about three hundred of them and half 
 of them dismounted at the creek and were sent up 
 through the woods to get in our rear. As the road at 
 this point was in the shape of a horse shoe we were 
 nearly at the point of the horse shoe. 
 
 Seeing clearly what they were doing I told the 
 Captain, but he was excited and he swore that we would 
 give them a few more rounds anyway. I kept watching 
 these dismounted men until they had reached the top 
 of the hill and then they would have to go even a less 
 
96 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 distance than we to cut off our retreat. Finally I show- 
 ed the Captain what they were doing and that we had 
 barely time by hard riding to get out. He did order 
 a retreat very regretfully, but he ordered the retreat 
 instantly and when we passed the point where they 
 would have cut us off, we barely had time to save our- 
 selves. "We lost in this little fight twelve or thirteen 
 men killed or captured. There was only about six of 
 us got back to Camp. 
 
 I have always thought it was a great mistake on 
 the part of the Commander to send so small a force 
 so far in front of the Army, and then I think an officer 
 should be able to keep his command under discipline. 
 He should refrain from risking his men where nothing 
 is promised but the excitement of the fighting. 
 
 I was a witness that day of a very remarkable 
 thing. One of these men, who was a first class soldier, 
 became panic stricken after the fight was over and to 
 my mind all, or nearly all, danger had passed. This 
 man unbuckled his sword and pistol belt, and threw 
 his weapons away and galloped to the rear as fast as 
 his horse could go. 
 
 I cannot give a continuous account of happenings 
 during these four years. I did not keep a dairy and I 
 have forgotten names and dates and in fact very many 
 important events with which I was closely connected. 
 I have deferred the writing of these reminiscences too 
 long. I find that I cannot recall the names of men 
 with whom I was intimately associated. 
 
 East of Warm Spring Mountain 
 
 During the fall of 1863, we fell back to the East 
 side of the warm Spring Mountain. The enemy in 
 
 I 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 97 
 
 heavy force was following iis closely. When we came 
 to the river three miles from Warm Spring's, Charley 
 Martin and I were anxious to go up the river two or 
 three miles to get dinner and to see two young ladies 
 up there with whom we were acquainted. Col. Amett 
 at first refused to let us go, but finally said, ''you can 
 go, but if you are captured and ever return to the regi- 
 ment, I will court martial you." We went, found the 
 folks at home, got a lunch and found the whole family 
 momentarily expecting the enemy. 
 
 One of our boys in the Regiment had a horse there 
 on pasture. I knew the Federals would capture him 
 and soon after reaching the house I sent a colored man 
 for him and had him hitched near the gate and close 
 to my horse. 
 
 The ladies and Charley and I came out to the gate 
 or stile and were chatting when a negro boy ran up 
 and yelled, ''the Yankees 'am a comin,." We looked 
 down through the orchard and they were coming sure 
 enough. 
 
 Charley jumped on his horse and started, but, I 
 decided to change saddles and lead my horse. It took 
 two or three precious minutes to do this and when I 
 mounted and started the Yankees were very close and 
 my "led" horse was moving very slowly, and I was 
 urging him to come on. 
 
 I had to cross the river near the house and as soon 
 as I reached the other side, I persuaded both horses into 
 a gallop. We had more than one-half mile to run to 
 the foot of the mountain. When we reached the woods 
 and had gone a short distance I overtook a small negro 
 boy riding behind some cattle trying to get them to a 
 
98 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 place of safety. The little negro was crying with all 
 his might and the tears streaming down his face. His 
 master was off on the flank trying to keep the cattle up 
 in the mountain road. I asked the boy what was the 
 matter. He burst out afresh and said, "I wish to God 
 I was in the woods som'whar. " I couldn't help but 
 laugh, because the forest was absolutely so dense around 
 us. We went a round-about way, but we got into Warm 
 Springs about two and one-half hours after the Com- 
 mand. 
 
 Mr. Mayo, the proprietor of the Warm Springs 
 Hotel, was very much alarmed, when Gen. W. L. Jack- 
 son declined to stop and fight at Warm Springs. The 
 General told him his force was not equal to that of the 
 enemy and he would be obliged to go on. 
 
 There were about 4,500 of the Federals and 1,800 
 of us. 
 
 We crossed the Warm Spring Mountain just in 
 front of the enemy, though they did not follow farther 
 than the towns of Warm Springs and Germantown. We 
 camped on the east side of the mountain that night. 
 The next morning the General decided to cross the 
 mountain and drive the enemy out of the Springs. 
 
 The first detachment that went over the mountain 
 was commanded by Col. Will Arnett. When we reached 
 the west side of the mountain we turned into a small 
 field. 
 
 Hunting for the Enemy 
 
 Presently volunteers were called for to go down 
 into Warm Springs and Germantown and see if the 
 enemy were still there. When no one responded, old 
 
 I 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 99 
 
 Gen. Wiley got up from the ground and said, "1 don't 
 think I am too old to go in the advance and find out." 
 Instantly a number of us . volunteered to go. I "was 
 g,mong the number, and seven of us went forward. We 
 were more afraid of an ambush. However, the Feder- 
 als had vacated the towns. We followed them almost 
 to Hot Springs, about four miles from the Warm 
 Springs. They felled a good many trees across the 
 road to hinder the pursuit. 
 
 After following them four miles we turned back 
 and reported to the command, which had now moved 
 forward and camped at the Springs. 
 
 Dr. M'cChesney lived at Germantown. When we, 
 the scouts or advance, followed close after the Federals, 
 as they went out of town, nearly all thei women and 
 children were out in the streets, shouting and laughing 
 and rejoicing. When we were nearly opposite the Me- 
 Chesney home, Mrs. McChesney came out into the street 
 in front of us shouting and throwing her baby up and 
 catching it in her hands. 
 
 She was the mother of about six children. She was 
 about 38 years old and I have often thought the hand- 
 somest woman of her age I have even seen. She was 
 the daughter of a celebrated family in Southwest Vir- 
 ginia by the name of Moffett. 
 
 General Jackson was ordered to move that evening 
 to the Gatewood farm on Buck Creek to get in front 
 of the Federal General who was being pursued by Mc- 
 Causlands brigade. Our command for some reason un- 
 known to us did not march until six hours later. Had 
 we gotten the position we were expected to take at Gate- 
 wood 's and with McCausland pressing them in the rear, 
 
100 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 there is no doubt but that a great part of Averills army, 
 with his Artiller\^ and wagon train, would have fallen 
 into our hands. 
 
 As it was we arrived at Gatewood in less than an 
 hour after Averill's rear passed and about the time we 
 arrived MeCausland came up. I have never heard the 
 matter explained and there was doubtless a good reason 
 for our not mo\aug on, but we always believed that, 
 notwithstanding the fact that the Federal army was 
 much larger and better equipped than Jackson and Me- 
 Causland, his command would have fallen into our 
 hands, after a sharp struggle, maybe, but, we felt that 
 we could have done it. 
 
 Anything to Get Grub 
 
 A rather funny incident occurred the morning 
 after we had crossed over Warm Spring mountain and 
 some days before the march to Gatewoods. "We did 
 not receive orders to camp until about 9 :30 P. M. and 
 then found there was nothing to eat for either man 
 or horse. I walked about a mile and a half to get a 
 couple of sheafs of oats for my horse, then I lay down 
 and slept without anything to eat. The next morning 
 we had nothing to eat, but Lieut. Boggs came around 
 where Charley Martin and I were standing, boasting 
 that he had just enjoyed a good breakfast over at the 
 house, pointing at a large farm house near, owned by 
 a widow lady. Boggs said he represented himself as 
 Colonel someone, I have forgotten who, and he made 
 an impression on the widow. She gave him a good 
 breakfast and he was invited to return. Charley Mar- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK lOl 
 
 tin and I were hungry and we went over to the house 
 and insisted on seeing the widow. Martin very gravely 
 introduced me as Maj. Cammack and I introduced him 
 as Lieut. Martin. I asked the lady if a large man in 
 good uniform had been there that morning represent- 
 ing himself as a Col. and getting his breakfast. I told 
 her I was very sorry that one of our young Lieut's 
 should act so dishonorably and that I should have him 
 punished. The lady was very indignant at the impo- 
 sition practiced on her by Boggs. She finally thought 
 of her duty as hostess to us and invited us to breakfast. 
 After we had partaken heartily we were invited to 
 come back whenever we could and eat with her again. 
 We took our leave with many regrets and went 
 back to camp and told Boggs. 
 
 Battle of Droop Mountain 
 
 The battle of Droop Mountain took place shortly 
 after this. I had been ordered to Richmond, Virginia 
 to recruit and to bring out the men to Jackson's brigade. 
 The command moved to Droop Mountain, had the en- 
 gagement, and had returned to Buck Creek, while I 
 was away in Richmond. 
 
 Soon after this time, as I remember it was near the 
 first of December, 1863, my health became bad again 
 and the surgeon of our Brigade insisted that I should 
 go as far east as Richmond, Virginia, and join myself 
 to some command there and remain through the winter. 
 I am continually worried by a failure to remember 
 interesting dates and names of people in writing these 
 reminiscences, but, sometimes I cannot remember occur- 
 
102 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 rences during a period of as much as two or three 
 months, and then I have only very hazy recollections 
 of happenings during this period. 
 
 I kept no notes nor diary at all during the war. 
 Now after fifty years have gone by I find I can only 
 remember a part of the stirring things that occurred 
 from sixty-one to sixty-five and I am very sorry that 
 I did not write of these things soon after the war, when 
 they were fresh in my mind. 
 
 I went to Fluvanna County, Virginia, to Uncle 
 Peter Manley's sometime in December, 1863. On the 
 1st day of January, 1864, I got into Richmond early 
 in the morning, landing there on a James river canal 
 boat. For many years this first day of January, '64, 
 was spoken of as the coldest day Richmond ever had. 
 
 Around Richmond 
 
 I do not know what the strength of our army was 
 that defended Richmond at that time. But the enemy 
 were not investing the city as they did later in the 
 year. 
 
 At this time Gen. Braxton Bragg, had command 
 of the Department of Richmond, which I suppose in- 
 cluded Drewrys Bluff, and Chaffins Bluff, two strongly 
 fortified places on the James river. 
 
 We had a line of fortifications running around 
 the city beginning three miles from the city on the 
 west at the river and running a few miles out, entirely 
 encompassing the city and going into the river just 
 below Chaffins Bluff. This line of works was said to 
 be thirty-five miles long. These earthworks were about 
 
 1 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRt CAMMACK 103 
 
 fifteen feet at the base and something like seven feet 
 thick at the top, except at intervals of about three hun- 
 dred yards. There were redoubts built, which were 
 much thicker and occasionally forts built. These forts 
 and redoubts, and all the fortifications in this inner 
 line were built of heavy timber and filled with earth. 
 
 Every redoubt had guns mounted, the largest of 
 these pieces were thirty-twos. When I came to Rich- 
 mond the first day of January, 1864, I purposed to join 
 Gen. Morgan, who was being lionized greatly at that 
 time, he having recently made his escape from Camp 
 Chase. His brother-in-law. Gen. Brazil Duke, was there 
 also. I tried to join myself with Morgan's command, 
 but as a matter of fact my health appeared to be so 
 bad they were afraid to take me in. 
 
 Hence it was that I entered the service there in 
 the Tenth Artillery doing service at that time around 
 the whole interior line of fortifications. The Captain 
 of my Company C, was a man by the name of Barlow. 
 He was a fine looking soldier about 36 years old. He 
 had a company of men numbering 130. I went into 
 the mess in which his brother Jim Barlow, and his half 
 brother, a man by the name of Sam Pollock, were mem- 
 bers. There were only about six of us in the mess. 
 
 One of the first incidents that I remember after 
 joining the company was when Capt. Barlow invited me 
 to come to his quarters one evening. We talked about 
 the field service and some occurrences in soldier experi- 
 ences. During the conversation I was induced to make 
 what I have always considered a bad break, or at best 
 a very untimely remark. It was this. I told Barlow 
 that the men in his command appeared as much afraid 
 
104 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 of Lieutenants and Captains as other soldiers where 
 I had been serving were of Generals. I saw at once that 
 Captain Barlow did not like this remark. He was a 
 strict disciplinarian and in fact a regular martinet, and 
 was not willing that any soldier in his command should 
 think of an officer other than as a great man that he 
 must be entirely subservient to. 
 
 Barlow liked me as a soldier, but he disliked my 
 rather free way of looking at Commissioned Officers. 
 The Captain evidently had it in for me, and whenever 
 he had an opportunity he made me remember it. 
 
 An Untimely Raid 
 
 One of the first bouts with the enemy was, I think, 
 in February '64, Gen. Gilpatrick and Gen. Dahlgreen 
 of the Federal Army conceived the brilliant idea of 
 making a raid inside our lines and releasing all the 
 prisoners confined at Belle Isle, and other prisons, then 
 looting the city and possibly capturing it. Our au- 
 thorities were not aware of this movement until the 
 federal cavalry were actually within our lines. We 
 were double quicked, acting as infantry about eight 
 or nine miles, from below the city to the north west 
 where we met the raiders. 
 
 I remember it was a very rainy night and at that 
 season of the year not very warm. JMy shoes, which 
 had been issued to me the day before this march, were 
 made for the navj and were not sewed or pegged, but 
 were put together with gum paste. Of course the slush 
 and mud in which I was obliged to go soon caused them 
 to come to pieces. The soles were gone, the uppers 
 flapping about my ankles, but my feet in the mud. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 105 
 
 This was anything but pleasant to me. We made 
 a pretty good fire when we halted, but there was only 
 one fire for the whole company and as a matter fact 
 I did not get close to it at all. 
 
 The attack was made on the lines about two hours 
 later and Gen. Dahlgreen was killed about three hun- 
 dred yards to our left. 
 
 The raid made by the enemy was successfully re- 
 pulsed. We were ordered back next morning about 
 ten o'clock. I think it would have been hard to find a 
 more wet, muddy and forlorn command than we were 
 as we marched back that day to our camp. Some, like 
 myself, were actually barefooted, dragging along 
 through the mud and water. 
 
 Getting Shoes 
 
 I made a request for a pair of shoes that day, but 
 Capt. Barlow said none would be issued me because 
 I had just had a pair. The next daj' I was ordered on 
 guard duty up the line about a mile. I refused to go 
 unless shoes were issued to me or that I be sent in 
 command of the guard. In the latter event I would 
 have no sentry duty to perform. I was a little surprised 
 to be soon ordered to this redoubt in command of the 
 guard, but the shoes were again refused. During the 
 afternoon of that day the Colonel in command came 
 as was the custom to make an inspection of the redoubt. 
 The Colonel rode up and after the salute by the sentry, 
 he asked for the officer in command. I immediately 
 stepped out of the hut, dressed as follows: I think I 
 wore a home-made straw hat, I do not know what sort 
 
106 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 of shirt, a pair of old grey trousers with one suspender 
 and barefooted. I carried an Enfield rifle, which I 
 very properly brought to a Present Arms. The Colonel 
 returned the salute and said, "I want to see the officer 
 in command of this redoubt." I kept my face perfectly 
 straight and answered, "I have the honor sir, to be in 
 command here." I could see that he was very amused 
 at my appearance as an officer, but we went through 
 with the inspection, the Colonel remaining as dignified 
 as only an Old Army officer knows how to be. 
 
 When the inspection was over, the Colonel saluted 
 and started away. I stopped him and said I had a 
 small matter to talk about. He graciously gave me 
 permission to talk and I explained my appearing before 
 him barefooted, because my Captain declined to issue 
 me a pair of shoes. The Colonel did not interrupt 
 until I was through, he then said "I will see, sir, that 
 the shoes are issued to you." 
 
 I went down to Cam]) for a few minutes during 
 the day and met the Captain. He had already heard 
 of the matter and had been directed to issue me a pair 
 of shoes. He said, "D— — it all, I hear you have been 
 talking to the Colonel ! " I said, ' ' Yes, I have explained 
 the matter to the Colonel and I think I will get the 
 shoes." I got the shoes alright, but Capt. Barlow, did 
 not get in a good humor with me. 
 
 When I joined the company of Capt. Barlow, there 
 was a verbal agreement tliat I should be transferred 
 to the Cavalry and field service when the winter had 
 passed. When the spring time came, I very naturally 
 wanted to go back to the army in the valley or fronting 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 107 
 
 Western Virginia. This notion was opposed by Capt. 
 Barlow. Then I found a good man to put in my place, 
 who was a member of the 10th Virginia Cavalry and 
 whose home was near Richmond. This, also, Barlow 
 refused, although the soldier was a first-class one. Bar- 
 low then told me plainly that "He'd be D d if he 
 
 intended to let me go out of his Company." 
 
 From that time on there was much dislike between 
 us. I was very careful to give him no opportunity to 
 use his authority against me. We had a little scrap of 
 words one day and I told him that he might watch as 
 closely as he pleased, but that he would never have a 
 good reason for putting me in the guard house, or 
 punishing me in any way. I think he watched for an 
 opportunity to humiliate me in some way, but never 
 found it. On one occasion though, he made the most 
 of what he thought was a good chance at me. It was 
 at inspection of Arms. This usually occurred just after 
 Roll Call, early in the morning. There was about the 
 full number, 130 present and the Captain in going 
 through inspection examined my gun critically. After 
 it was over, he stood in front of the Company and 
 ordered a man by the name of Hubbard and myself 
 to step three paces to the front. We did so and then 
 he ordered us back to our quarters and to clean our 
 guns. As a matter of fact my gun was clean but it 
 was a bronzed barrel. I had traded my rifle to one of 
 the company because the bronzed barrel did not need 
 much rubbing. Of course Capt. Barlow knew my gun 
 was clean, but all the Company could not know it and 
 he intended the orders he gave as a reflection on me. 
 
108 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Another Effort 
 
 Sometime in February or March the enemy in our 
 front, near Mechaniesville made an effort to break 
 through our lines at that point and get into the city. 
 Gen. Braxton Bragg, who was in command of the de- 
 partment of Richmond at that time, brought his forces 
 from several points on the interior lines where they 
 could be spared and hurried them to the point on the 
 Mechaniesville road. The engagement was of short 
 duration, and the Federals were driven back. 
 
 A rather queer incident occurred on this quick 
 march. We had two men in our company, Haskin 
 Brothers, one of them was an excellent soldier, but 
 the other was not. On the march referred to we were 
 within about seven hundred yards of the firing line, 
 when one of these brothers took a violent pain in his 
 stomach and laid down on the side of the road. A num- 
 ber of us tried to get him to go on but he would not. 
 Awhile after this we were hurrying down to Malvern 
 Hill at night, having been ordered to move quickly. 
 This man fell out of ranks and we soon heard the re- 
 port of a musket and on investigating the case found 
 that he had placed the muzzle of his rifle against the 
 toe of his shoe nearly severing one toe on his foot and 
 cutting his big toe badly. He said that he was clean- 
 ing his gun at the time and that it went off accidentally. 
 Farther on I will mention one more incident in regard 
 to this man. 
 
 Several gun boats had come up the river to Mal- 
 vern Hill and landed some troops. Gen. Ewell with 
 a portion of Anderson's division and some other troops 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 109 
 
 went down in a hurry to meet them. About five of the 
 gun boats got our range about sundown and we held 
 the hill until about three-fourths of an hour after dusk, 
 when we were compelled to retire toward our breast 
 works. Wliile at Malvern Hill, we were probably eight 
 miles from our lines. Soon after we were ordered 
 back, we were halted and ordered not to fall out of 
 ranks. We were all nearly tired to death, but some 
 fellow and myself decided that we would drop out of 
 ranks and slip into some heavy pine timber through 
 which the road ran and get a good rest on the heavy- 
 bed of pine needles that covered all the ground. We 
 slipped out of ranks alright and went into the timber 
 a couple of hundred yards and were just about to laj' 
 down, when several shells came over very close to us 
 and tore into the trees, cutting the whole tops out of 
 the trees and letting them down so near us we were 
 afraid we would be killed. These shells thrown at us. 
 were called by us "nail kegs", because they were about 
 as large as nail kegs, and 18 or 20 inches^ long. We 
 decided we would get out and move on, which we did, 
 overtaking the command several miles further on. 
 
 Now I don't imagine that the Federal gunners 
 knew that my comrade and I were in that timber, but 
 they knew that our little army was passing through on 
 the road and they succeeded in making it very un- 
 pleasant for us and we moved briskly to get out of the 
 way. 
 
 While we were camped below Richmond, we were 
 very close to a large and beautiful plantation of an 
 old friend of the Hon. John Minor Botts, who lived 
 near Charlestown, Virginia. I knew this man verv 
 
110 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 well. He became very much opposed to the Confeder- 
 ate Government and had frequent cases of trouble with 
 them. I have always thought that if the Confederate 
 Government had treated Francis Stearns more kindly 
 he would have been united to the cause with hooks of 
 steel. One incident occurring before I knew him helps 
 to confirm this opinion. 
 
 Francis Stearns 
 
 Early in the war a Cavalry Company was organ 
 ized at Richmond and Mr. Stearns invited the whole 
 company and their families to banquet with him in his 
 beautiful home. The invitation was accepted and the 
 company, one hundred strong, came. Now there was 
 a servant who stood in front of every horse and tooJc 
 them and fed them. The mothers and sisters of these 
 men were also invited. Two great tables had been 
 prepared, one for the ladies, presided over by Mrs. 
 Stearns and the other for the men, where Mr. Stearns 
 made a speech, commending the men for their patriotic 
 response to the call of their country. Among other 
 things he said was that "No soldier should ever pass 
 his gate hungry, during the war." The State and con- 
 federate States as well, seem to have resented the in- 
 timate friendship between ]\Ir. Stearns and John Minor 
 Botts, probably because Botts had stood with all of 
 liis power against the state of Virginia in the matter 
 secession. Stearns was a fiery man and when he 
 thought the government had him somewhat under sus- 
 picion, he got angry and allowed them to think the 
 worst of him. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 111 
 
 He was arrested and imprisoned for disloyalty 
 to Virginia. 
 
 I have good reason to think that if he was an 
 enemy, that he became one through unjust suspicioii 
 and ill treatment. 
 
 The summer of '64 was made up of drilling, roll 
 calls and quick marches from one point to another 
 along our tremendously long front. 
 
 Grant Fails 
 
 T think it was in June of that year that Gen. Grant 
 tiring of his attempts to take Richmond from the north 
 side, instituted his daring effort by the left flank march, 
 after the battle of the wilderness. The intention of 
 the Federal General was to cross the river some twenty 
 miles below Richmond, but constantly as he moved by 
 the left flank, he found Lee's army in his front. Finally 
 a very bloody battle was fought at Cold Harbor, north- 
 east of Richmond. I think that scarcely any ])attle of 
 the war was more bloody. Grant had. force enough to 
 withstand his dreadful losses there, and in a few days 
 he took up his line of march again for the front of 
 Petersburg. There was only a small force of men oc- 
 cupying the interior line of defense around Richmond 
 during '63 and until after the battle of Cold Harbor 
 in '64. 
 
 During the whole of eighteen hundred and sixt}^ 
 four, my command was in front of Richmond. When 
 the many scouts and spies located here and there, at dif- 
 ferent points discovered that the enemy proposed break- 
 ing through, then we were sent there. As the head of 
 
112 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Grant's column reached the James River and was pre 
 paring to cross and invest Petersburg, our eomniarid 
 was hurried to a point about four miles from the river 
 but when we got there the enemy's camp fires were 
 smoking, they having just cooked three days rations 
 and moved toward the river. 
 
 I think that Gen. Lee Avould have preferred for 
 Grant to cross the river, rather than to have fought 
 another general engagement at that time. 
 
 Desertions 
 
 Our army was fearfully reduced by the casualties 
 of the many battles they had fought that year and with 
 sickness, captures and desertion. I am sorry to say 
 that desertion constituted a very serious loss to the army 
 of northern Virginia, If the loss by desertion had 
 been altogether of the worthless fellows in the army, 
 we could have stood it better but, as a matter of fact. 
 very many excellent soldiers received letters from their 
 homes and received reports of the suffering and priva- 
 tions of their families until their patriotism became 
 entirely overshadowed by the love they bore their 
 families, A large number of such men as these took 
 "French leave", never returning. Some of the men 
 who ran away from the army and went to their homes 
 saw to their families the best they could and returned 
 to the army. 
 
 From what little history I know, my conviction 
 is that the best army the whole world has ever seen 
 was the Confederate Army. A very large number of 
 the men were intelligent and refined. In almost everv 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 113 
 
 company there could have been found a number of 
 privates entirely equal to and often superior to the 
 man who commanded them. I have the opinion that 
 this army was as well disciplined for fighting purposes 
 as any that ever existed. There were men in it from 
 every walk of life and yet the whole of them bore the 
 worst privations and hardships including hunger and 
 cold as if they enjoyed it. 
 
 After the war I lived awhile at Marietta, Ohio. 
 Several people wanting to make me feel comfortable 
 said, "We don't blame you, we know that you had to 
 go in the army and could not help it." 
 
 I was obliged to tell them to not waste any sym- 
 pathy on me, that I went into this army because I 
 wanted to and that I never saw the day I couldn't 
 have gotten away if I had wanted to. 
 
 Libby Prison 
 
 We did guard duty for about six or eight weeks 
 at Libby Prison, Libby No. 2 and at Castle Thunder. 
 I was also at Belle Island one night. 
 
 I will explain that at Libby Prison, Union officers 
 alone were kept. I do not know how many were there 
 at any one time, but probably as many as 1,200. They 
 were as comfortably fixed as they would have been in 
 quarters arranged by themselves. The building was 
 an old tobacco factory, two stories high, with a base- 
 ment, or cellar underneath. The building was about 
 three hundred and fifty feet long. It fronted on Canal 
 Street and on Cary Street. 
 
 I was ordered into the two floors of this officers 
 building several times, when they would refuse to at- 
 
114 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 tend roll call. I talked to a good many of them. They 
 did not complain of the fare, only as to its cheapness. 
 r have seen several bushels of corn bread at a time, 
 thrown out of the windows of that second floor, and as 
 you have seen hogs grabbing corn thrown to them, so 
 I have seen children of the city, white and black, watch- 
 ing for the throwing out of this bread, so they could 
 grab it as pigs rush and grab ears of corn when they 
 are being fed. 
 
 Libby number two, was a prison, also a tobacco 
 factory, where sometimes about 900 men were kept. 
 
 The Irish Beat Me 
 
 Two rather amusing things occurred here. One 
 was a case in which I was one of the actors. I was 
 sentinel at one end of this building. By some means 
 a large hole had been made in the brick work and the 
 prisoners would frequently come to that hole and talk 
 to us. One night I was on guard duty at that point 
 and I heard a rich Irish voice ''Sentinel, Sentinel," I 
 answered him, going up close to the hole. He said, 
 "I want to trade you a new all-wool navy blue shirt 
 for some wheat bread." Well we dickered some and 
 I agreed to give him so many loaves. I could not de- 
 liver the bread until' I could go up town and buy it. 
 but on my next turn of duty, I would deliver it and 
 get the shirt. I bought his seven loaves, paying, I 
 think 30 cents per loaf for it. When I went to ex- 
 change the bread for the shirt, I said, ' ' Now remember, 
 I won't have an old shirt." Then he swore that this 
 shirt had never been on a man's back. "Now," said 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 115 
 
 he, "You take hold of part of the shirt and give me 
 hold of part of the bread package." This I did and 
 then he' let go of the shirt and I of the bread at the 
 same time and the trade was made. The trouble about 
 this matter came a little later. I stuffed my newly 
 acquired, clean, navy-blue shirt into the bosom of my 
 overcoat and, when relief came, I hurried back to the 
 guard house and lay down to sleep. I was very un- 
 comfortable and when daylight came, I found that my 
 fine Irish friend had allowed me to have an old worn 
 out blue shirt that had probably never been washed 
 and was full of lice. It is needless to say that this old 
 shirt had filled my clothing, not with gray-backs, but 
 with the worst breed of blue-backs. 
 
 The other incident I think of took place at this 
 same prison. The guard room was directly under one 
 of the prison rooms. The ceiling in the guard room 
 was about 133/2 feet high : In the middle of the guard 
 room was a trap door, about 3x31/2 feet wide in the 
 ceiling, opening into the prisoners room. One of our 
 men traded something, I don't remember what, to a 
 Yankee up there for a blanket. Our fellow stood on 
 a table and reached up catching hold of the end of the 
 blanket. The fellow reached down and got hold of 
 whatever was being traded him and then shouted, 
 "hoist away". Three or four Yankees were holding 
 onto the blanket up there and at the word they pulled 
 away with a will. Our man, Gilman, had wrapped the 
 end of the blanket around his wrist so that he couldn't 
 let go very quickly, when his head struck the ceiling it 
 was with considerable force, he let go of the end of 
 the blanket and dropped to the floor. He was hurt 
 
116 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 right much and lost out in the trade. He had been 
 badly used by the prisoners but he could not complain 
 because it was a violation of the military rules for 
 him to even answer a question asked by a prisoner, 
 much less to have a trade with one of them. 
 
 The Famous Libby Canal 
 
 It was in Libby Prison that the famous tunnel 
 was cut, which allowed the escape of a large number 
 of Union officers. The building stood on a corner. 
 They seemed to have had easy access into the cellar 
 of the prison and no one has ever told how long they 
 were engaged in digging the tunnel. There could only 
 one dig at a time and he would bring the dirt out in 
 his pockets and scatter it, or more probably hide it 
 in a dark corner of the cellar. It was said to have 
 been an excellent piece of engineering skill. The tun- 
 nel, large enough to admit a man's body, went down 
 below and under the foundation of the prison, then 
 east under the sidewalk, then under the street and out 
 into a stall in a livery stable. I do not remember how 
 many escaped, but I think about 270, nearly all of them 
 were captured and returned to prison. 
 
 I was fortunate in knowing a man at Libby pris- 
 on, who was a very fine cook, and he had charge of 
 the kitchen in the preparation of the meals for Capt. 
 Turner and other officers of the prison. His name was 
 Jesse Walker. He married a cousin of mine and was 
 detailed from the 44th Virginia to this service. Jesse 
 gave me very many good meals at their table during 
 my service in front of Richmond in 1864. 
 
 I 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 117 
 
 President Davis 
 
 I remember a very exciting thing that occurred 
 in front of the prison one day. Pres. Davis, went down 
 on a vessel from Rockets to some point below to examine 
 the river defenses and when he returned he got off 
 the boat and walked up to his residence. He was alone 
 and he came up Canal Street by the prison. When 
 he stepped up on the sidewalk at the lower end of the 
 building one of the sentinels posted on the walk to pre- 
 vent people from walking close to the windows, halted 
 him and directed him to walk in the street. Mr. Davis 
 seems to have not known about the order to keep in 
 the street and he was quite indignant at the man order- 
 ing him out,' of the way, telling him that he was Mr. 
 Davis, President of the Confederacy. The sentinel still 
 refused to let him pass and Mr. Davis always carried 
 a' sword cane. He was so angry that he sprung the 
 sword and lunged at the man. The man was not sure 
 that he was the President, but he feared that he was. 
 He backed away from him and called the Officer of the 
 Guard, who came running and had the sentry taken 
 to Castle Thunder, which was the place where our own 
 political prisoners and all spies were incarcerated. 
 
 Mr. Davis, was unreasoning in his anger at the man 
 who obeyed his orders to keep everyone off the side- 
 walk at the prison. I think the sentinel would have 
 been court martialed, but when the news of this out- 
 rage reached our camp a large body of our men rebelled 
 and were going up to attack Castle Thunder and take 
 the man out. When this news came to the authorities 
 some of them hastily looked into the matter and called 
 
118 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 on the President and had the man released, thus ending 
 a very unpleasant matter that bid fair to have a bloody 
 ending. 
 
 We had a man by the name of St. John, son of 
 Bishop St. John of the Episcopal church in Richmond. 
 This young man was a very clever bright' young man 
 and a good soldier, but he was dreadfully afflicted with 
 chronic diarrhoea. Up to almost the last of 1864 he was 
 still a victim of the disease. 
 
 I knew one man in this company who actually died 
 of the "itch". This ailment is often laughed at by 
 those who do not know how serious it may become. I 
 had it a number of times myself and I have known 
 scores of men who were sufferers from it. Once I 
 got some mercurial salve and rubbed all over me. I got 
 well soon after this, but I have known of men dying 
 from the use of this ointment and then taking cold. 
 
 During the summer of '64, we were hard put to 
 it in getting enough to eat. In my mess there were 
 six of us. Wm. Barlow, brother of the Captain of 
 our Company and Tom Pollock, half brother of the 
 Barlows, and three other men whose names have been 
 forgotten. I remember we went down to the fields 
 of Francis Stearns and gleaned after the wheat harvest 
 and dried the heads of wheat on our blankets, then 
 rubbed them in our hands blowing the chaff away. 
 We thus gathered 1% bushels of wheat which we carried 
 to a little water mill up the line and had it ground. 
 We baked hot cakes with all the bran in it. We could 
 not afford to lose any part of it. 
 
 One of our mess was a man of great appetite. He 
 was never known to have enough. We were compelled 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 119 
 
 in self defense, to divide the bread into as many parts 
 as there was members in the mess so that we might 
 share equally. We brought pumpkins up after night 
 and put them in our tent, using them sparingly. 
 
 Slim "Picking" 
 
 The coffee berry was not to be had from the Com- 
 missary except at long intervals. During this year 
 there was three months from one issuance of coffee to 
 the next, and then I counted the grains received for 
 three days ration and found just thirty two (32) grains. 
 We would get meat issued but about once in from two 
 to three months. I have paid one dollar for a cold 
 sweet potato. 
 
 Our menu generally consisted of one-half pint of 
 blackeyed peas, one gill of very weak sorghum and one 
 pint of cornmeal unsifted and notwithstanding all of 
 this, we, that is our company, seldom lost| a man by 
 desertion. 
 
 We had a man by the name of Abinoe that de- 
 serted. He was a sharp, shrewd fellow, lazy and a 
 natural born liar, if there ever was any such person. 
 On one charge or another he spent about half of his 
 time in the guard house. 
 
 Close Together 
 
 Along in October, '64, the Federal lines and ours 
 were about two hundred and twenty-five yards apart 
 and there was an agreement that if a man from either 
 side got more than one-half the distance between the 
 lines he must not be fired on. One morning Abinoe 
 
120 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 was on duty as a picket. He picked up a paper and 
 climbed out of the rifle pit and said that he believed 
 that he would go out there and trade papers. No one 
 objected and when he got half way between the lines 
 he sprinted, and before anyone could shoot he was so 
 close to the enemy's line that he went in safely. 
 
 One other case of desertion came to my notice in 
 this immediate part of our line. In this case about 
 seven men and a Lieut, were involved. These men were 
 all on the picket line one dark night and I suppose had 
 persuaded themselves that this was the best opportunity 
 they would ever have to go to the Yankees. They start- 
 ed about 2:30 A. M. but had^ forgotten that our line 
 made a sharp turn not far from where they started, 
 so instead of walking into the enemy's lines as they 
 had expected to do, they walked over and were received 
 into the Confederate lines. The case was so clear 
 against them that they made no denial nor defense. 
 They were executed as soon as the formality of a court 
 martial could be gone through with next day. 
 
 While we were at this camp I went over to Mr. 
 Franklin Stearns one day, hoping to get some fresh 
 buttermilk. Mr Stearns was out on the porch and he 
 was very clever to me and invited me in and I talked 
 with him for half an hour. He urged me to come back 
 and see him, which I did many times. John Minor 
 Botts, the Congressman, was a particular friend of his 
 and he was full of the opinions so often expressed by 
 that statesman, in opposition to State Rights, Southern 
 Rights and Secession, and it seemed to me every prin- 
 ciple that Virginia stood for. 
 
 One day, when we were talking about State Rights, 
 and I had given that as a reason for the South going 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 121 
 
 into war, Mr. Stearns said, "D State Rights, I 
 
 am going to send my boys to Europe as fast as they 
 become old enough to go into the Army." 
 
 Mr. Stearns became very objectionable to the Gov- 
 ernment and on account of some of his utterances and 
 acts, he was arrested and put in prison as a' disloyal 
 Southern man. He got out of prison, but was verj^ 
 much embittered against the Confederate Government. 
 From what I know of him I think that he could have 
 been retained as a warm and useful friend of the South 
 had it not been for some illadvised things said and done 
 by some ultra Southern men, who were not friendly to 
 Mr. Stearns. He was a very rich man. 
 
 The interior lines around Richmond were about 
 thirty-five miles long and after General Grant made 
 his famous flank movement to the left and crossed 
 Petersburg, we had very few troops on the north side, 
 except those on this interior line. Often we had a 
 very thin line protecting Richmond. I have known our 
 forces reduced to not more than one thousand to the 
 mile. We had redoubts thrown up at intervals of about 
 eight hundred yards along this line, mounted heavy with 
 guns, especially on the east and south. 
 
 We had been, hurriedly called out of this interior 
 line one day and sent down on the Charles city road 
 where we had some artillery to meet the enemy who 
 were about to enter the city at that point. 
 
 It happened that while we were in line not far 
 from the Rockbridge Battery, I saw a group of officers 
 on their horses close to us. I drew a little nearer and 
 recognized Gen. R, E. Lee, President Davis and Gen. 
 Ijawton. There were a number of other officers also. 
 
122 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 A few minutes afterwards an orderly galloped up to 
 Gen. Lee and saluting said, "The Colonel sends his 
 compliments to Gen. Lee and says he does not need any 
 infantry to support his battery." 
 
 The Rockbridge Battery was one of the most fam- 
 ous organizations in the army and the same battery 
 that Bob Lee, the son of Robert E. Lee belonged as a 
 private. 
 
 It was not often the case that a battery of Artillery 
 felt so able to take care of themselves that they could 
 afford to decline the Infantry support offered them. 
 
 Dr. Mary Walker 
 
 During this year of 1864, our command was help- 
 ing guard the prisoners in Richmond. I think I have 
 mentioned this before, but there comes to me now an 
 incident that I will relate. One morning I was sent 
 to Castle Thunder, a prison in which spies, deserters 
 and disloyal southern people were kept. Soon after 
 going on duty I passed the door of a prisoner, a comely 
 looking young woman, that was not very striking in 
 appearance, except that she was dressed oddly. She 
 wore a bloomer costume. She told me her name was 
 Miss Dr. Mary E. "Walker. She had been arrested as 
 a spy. I do not know how soon she got out of prison. 
 I saw her on the street guarded by a policeman, who 
 had taken her to the Provost Marshals office. He was 
 very much ashamed to be seen on the street with her, 
 when she had such a peculiar dress. Everybody guyed 
 him a great deal. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 123 
 
 Volunteers 
 
 One evening about the middle of September, our 
 company was ordered into line and we were told that 
 eight volunteers were wanted from this company. No 
 other explanation was given. I do not know how many 
 responded, but I happened to be one of the men. 
 
 We immediately got ready and marched to Rockets, 
 the steam boat landing, where we went on board a boat 
 with several hundred men. None of us knew where we 
 were going. 
 
 The river had boats sunk here and there and mines 
 laid to prevent the enemy's vessels from coming up, 
 but our pilot understood the river route alright and 
 about two o'clock, we landed opposite Dutch Gap Canal 
 at Signal Hill. Gen. Butler was cutting a canal through 
 the bend, which would shorten the distance twenty or 
 more miles. There were about 400 of us sent to this 
 point to build bomb proofs, to prevent Butler from 
 carrying out his purpose. 
 
 We were constantly under the fire of his guns for 
 a good many days and nights and all the time we were 
 there one-half of the command worked on the bomb- 
 proofs while the other half stood in line with our guns 
 ready for action. 
 
 At night I think we placed a guard and got what 
 sleep we could. The great noise of the big guns firing 
 over and around us was not easy to sleep through, al- 
 though we got used to it. 
 
 This 400 men was made up of volunteers from 
 probably sixty different commands. The officer in 
 cjiarge was a Major, I cannot recall his name. He was 
 
124 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 a man about thirty-five years old, but not a pleasant 
 person at all. He was very overbearing and was much 
 disliked among the men. 
 
 One morning about four o'clock we were all arous- 
 ed and drew three day's rations and began a hurried 
 march back toward the city. After marching several 
 miles in the direction of Fort Harrison, which was just 
 outside of our interior lines, and on a small hill, we 
 found that the enemy had followed us with a large 
 army corps. 
 
 The Battle of Fort Harrison, Sept 29 
 
 We hurried along, feeling that Fort Harrison 
 would be a good place in case of a fight. 
 
 Bushrod Johnson's Brigade, now only about 350 
 men, having been badly used up during the summer 
 by fighting and sickness, covered our rear. We entered 
 the Fort which had about seven thirty-two pound guns 
 mounted and some smaller pieces. By the time we 
 entered the Fort the enemy's sharpshooters were within 
 less than three hundred yards of the walls. The men 
 who were in charge of the Fort that morning were a 
 mere handful and when they saw Gen. Howard's corps 
 crossing the plain behind the few of us in front of 
 Johnson, they left their guns and nearly all the men 
 went in the direction of Richmond. 
 
 Soon after we had taken position in the Fort and 
 commenced firing, the enemy formed several brigades, 
 four lines deep and made a tremendous attack on the 
 left wing of the Fort. The fighting was dreadful. We 
 got most of the guns manned, but not all of them got 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 125 
 
 into action, because we did not have enough men who 
 understood handling those big guns to work on them. 
 
 I suppose we held the place about forty-five min- 
 utes. 
 
 We had, in the beginning of the fight, about six 
 hundred and sixty men, including the remnant of Bush- 
 rod Johnson's brigade. Johnson's men were few in 
 number and were almost exhausted when they reached 
 the Fort. 
 
 The enemy finally captured the right wing of our 
 Fort, thus driving us farther left. When we first came 
 into the fight, I was carrying our bacon strung in small 
 strips, like fish are carried. I threw it over on the 
 parapet and we went to loading and shooting as fast 
 as we could. When we were ordered to the left, Tom 
 Pollard, my mess-mate, grabbed the meat and brought 
 it along. I did not think of it. 
 
 When we were in position over on the left, Tom 
 said to me, ''Mac, what in the name of God will I do 
 with the meat?" I said to him: ''To the devil with 
 the meat, throw it in that shanty behind us. If we 
 ever get out of this, we can get it and if we do not, 
 we won't need it." 
 
 The enemy came up to within about seventy-five 
 yards of the parapet and I think they did not gain a 
 yard for about ten minutes, but, there were too many. 
 We could not hold nor drive them back. I was standing 
 where there was an opening in the wall to let artillery 
 ill and out of the fort. I knew it was not a pleasant 
 place for me, but in the excitement and confusion of 
 the night, I thought of nothing else to do than to stay 
 there. About that time I heard some extra loud shout- 
 
126 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 ing and looking to my right I saw a color bearer with 
 a number of his comrades on top of the fort about fifty 
 feet from me. The man was jabbing the staff in the 
 earth, trying to plant the standard. I fired at him 
 as he was jabbing the staff in the ground. He fell for- 
 ward on his knees and then backward. Two other men 
 told me they fired at that color bearer at the same mo- 
 ment that I did. I never knew to a certainty.' that I 
 ever shot and killed anyone during the war. 
 
 The Major of whom I spoke above as having com- 
 mand at Signal Hill, was killed in this action. Col. 
 Hughes took command. When the first Federal line 
 was about thirty feet outside the parapet from where 
 I was standing, Col. Hughes spurred his horse across 
 this military road and almost into their line and emptied 
 his revolver in their faces. As he reined the horse back 
 they were grabbing at his horses bridle. Then he turned 
 the animal and was jumping him across this military 
 road. While the horse was making the leap he was shot 
 and fell. The rider must have fallen fifteen feet. In 
 the meantime I had started tc« the rear and as I ran 
 past the Col., who had just fallen, I glanced down at 
 him and at that moment he jumped up and we ran off 
 together. Of course the Federals streamed into the 
 place, many, many thousands of them. 
 
 Too Much For Us 
 
 As I ran off Tom Pollard called at me to not 
 run so fast, he was lame and could not keep up. I 
 glanced over my shoulder and told Tom I was sorry 
 for him, but I didn't have time to stop. Some of these 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 127 
 
 big thirty-twos and fours had been loaded before the 
 eannoniers were driven off and the Yankees turned them 
 on us. I confess that the worst fear I had at that time 
 was being shot in the back with some of that grape or 
 canister. 
 
 We had about 650 men in the Fort, and we were 
 attacked by something over 16,000 men. We only car- 
 ried about fifty men out of the fight, the others were 
 killed, wounded and captured. 
 
 There was a line of rifle pits from the interior 
 line toward the river at Chafins Bluff. Those rifle pits 
 started from the line about six hundred yards above 
 Fort Harrison. I stopped at this place and with the 
 help of a Lieut, from Georgia, succeeded in rallying a 
 lot of the soldiers who had been driven from the Fort 
 and the line at other points. I suppose we had close 
 to 150 men together, when Gen. Ervel appeared and 
 ordered us to go into Fort Davis, a redoubt not far 
 from us. He said he would have 15,000 men there 
 in twenty minutes and we must hold the line until they 
 came. We rushed in there and found about 200 men 
 and six pieces of light artillery. Just as we were en- 
 tering the redoubts I looked over toward Richmonr) 
 and saw about three batteries of artillery coming. In 
 the meantime the enemy had extended their lines to 
 the right and had opened fire on our redoubt. Gen. 
 Howard concentrated twenty-four pieces of artillery 
 on that redoubt. The Infantry, only a few hundred 
 men, used all the cartridges we had and some of the 
 men ran to the rear to ordnance wagons and brought 
 ammunition in their handkerchiefs. 
 
 During this fight I saw every man at the guns 
 <?o down. The one man who did not fall, the gunner. 
 
128 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 loaded and fired three times himself. We were ordered 
 to fix bayonets to prevent the enemy from taking the 
 redoubt. We were then firing on second shell. They 
 were so close that one of our men jumped on the parapet 
 and shouted to a lot of men that had gotten up close to 
 the walls to "throw down their guns and come in." 
 190 Federals did so. 
 
 Wounded 
 
 About this time the man commanding the redoubt 
 climbed up a post about midway of the redoubt. A can- 
 non ball struck him a side swipe across the back and 
 he fell to the ground. Before doing so he shouted, 
 "Don't give up the Fort!" Four men picked up the 
 man and started to the rear- and three of them were 
 shot and they let the body drop. I never knew any- 
 thing more about the man, but suppose that he died. 
 About this time I was wounded. I happened to be 
 hit on a finger with a bullet and on the right hip with 
 a piece of shell. The wound in my hand was slight, 
 that in the hip was serious. I was just behind the 
 parapet, two feet high, had my gun raised to fire, my 
 finger on the trigger, but at that moment a shell hit 
 the ground on the parapet about three feet from me 
 and exploded, one piece hitting me in the right hip 
 and making a wound about three inches long and just 
 scraping the bone. That side of me was instantly par- 
 alyzed and pretty soon I sank to the ground. Lieut. 
 Hunter, whom I knew very well, saw me go down and 
 he ran to me and said, "Mac, are you hurt?" I said 
 that I thought I was done for, because I thought I had 
 been hit by a minnie and it had gone clear through 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 129 
 
 me. Turner undid the waistbands of my pants and 
 examined the wound and said that I was worth several 
 dead men yet, that I was hurt by a piece of shell. I 
 was greatly relieved at finding I had been hit by a 
 piece of shell instead of a bullet going through me. 
 
 Just before this I saw a horse hit three times by as 
 many shells before he hit the ground. The evening 
 before this fight, Gen. Lee was out-generaled by Gen. 
 Grant. On what he thought was trustworthy informa- 
 tion (that Gen. Grant would attack Petersburg) Lee 
 moved thirty-five thousand men over to the south side. 
 As a matter of fact Grant had planned an attack on the 
 north side from Signal Hill. 
 
 I think Grant came very nearly being successful 
 in getting into Richmond that day. Late in the after- 
 noon of this day, reinforcements sufficient to hold the 
 line came up and we held nearly all the interior lines 
 east of Harrison, though the Federals made a fierce 
 and prolonged effort to capture the Stockade Fort, one- 
 third of a mile east of where I was wounded. The 
 Federals used troops for the most part at the Stockade 
 Fort and a large number of them were killed in their 
 efforts to break inside the enclosure. For the most part 
 they were killed in the moat, but the bodies of the others 
 were thrown in the moat and dirt shoveled over to 
 cover them. Two or three months after that I noticed 
 some of the skulls of these men lying about on the 
 ground in that neighborhood. 
 
 I was sent that evening out with the guards to 
 take prisoners up to Richmond. 
 
 I was very lame but using my gun as a staff, I 
 got up to a point opposite! our camp about six miles 
 
130 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 from the city and I was sent over to the old camp where 
 a few of our sick men were left when we were sent 
 away. The surgeon came in that night and dressed 
 my wound, the first attention that I had. I think the 
 piece of shell that hit me had torn and taken away 
 out of my pants and drawers pieces of cloth as 
 large as my hand. I was unable for duty for about 
 twelve days. 
 
 Getting Very Bad 
 
 After we left the lines that day with the prisoners, 
 I was hobbling along close to one of them, (they were 
 marching in fours) when some one reached around my 
 shoulders and caught the canteen strap that was around 
 the neck of the prisoner next to whom I was walking. 
 He being startled cried out. Turning I saw a soldier 
 trying to take the strap from around his neck. I 
 brought my gun to a charge bayonet and told the fellow 
 if he didn't let go of that strap I would run my bayonet 
 in him. He dropped his grasp of the strap and ran on 
 ahead of us. I was greatly surprised a few minutes 
 later to find that this fellow was a Captain and was 
 in command of the guard over the prisoners. I sup- 
 posed when I heard that he was the officer in command 
 that I would get into trouble for what I had done, but 
 I heard nothing more about it afterwards. I have al- 
 ways been glad that he was not an officer in a Virginia 
 command. We stopped on the way to rest and the 
 prisoner whom I had befriended opened his haversack 
 and gave me a lunch of bread and boiled ham. I had 
 not tasted food since the day before and was very 
 hungry. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMAOK 131 
 
 We were badly put to it while I was laying around 
 up at the camp, for something to eat. As I remember, 
 there was five or six sick sick or crippled up men. One 
 of the boys got a beefs head and I furnished the pump- 
 kin. I think the stuff was boiled a good many hours. 
 I did not think it tasted good or was clean for that 
 matter, but this kind of food was better than nothing. 
 
 Fort Harrison having fallen into the hands of 
 the enemy on September, 29th, it became necessary to 
 build a fortification on the west, parallel with that and 
 about three hundred yards from it. Shortly after this 
 we had a terrible artillery duel one day. "We opened 
 some of our light battery guns and about 25 mortars 
 on the line and Fort in front of us. We never knew 
 what their losses were, but although they opened a large 
 number of guns on us the execution was not very great. 
 I have never heard any greater noise made by guns 
 than that day. 
 
 It would have been foolish on our part to storm 
 the place because it had a moat in front of it and an 
 abattis in front of that and then small bombs very 
 thickly planted in front of the abattis rendering the 
 place almost invincible. 
 
 Refined Cruelty 
 
 The Captain of my company, knowing that the 
 artillery duel was coming off that day, sent two guards 
 up to the old camp and brought down a man confined 
 there in the guardhouse. His name was Haskins, the 
 man I have already referred to as firing his gun between 
 his toes and nearly severing one of them. The Captain 
 
132 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 had him brought down to enjoy the noise of the guns. 
 A good many of us thought it was a refinement of 
 cruelty. The man could not stand gun fire, although 
 he had a brother in our company who was as good a 
 soldier as we had. 
 
 The days dragged on slowly into winter. Most of 
 the land down in that section had been covered with a 
 thick growth of pine, little and big. The ground was 
 all cut over for firewood and for fortification timber. 
 
 The wagon hauling out wood used to come along 
 in the morning and throw off five or six pieces to the 
 mess, which had to last twenty-four hours. We were 
 not very particular about the cooking because there 
 was not much of this to do. But in rainy weather and 
 when the weather was cold, this green, wet pine wood 
 made little else than smoke, and we nearly froze. 
 
 I was detailed for a time in the Engineer Corps, 
 cutting and carrying timber for fortifications. This 
 was exceedingly hard labor, but it was preferable to 
 laying along the wet and muddy lines and doing camp 
 and picket duty. 
 
 In Close Contact 
 
 Along this part of our front, we were less than 
 two hundred and fifty yards apart. One morning one 
 of the negro soldiers across from us picked up his coffee 
 pot from the fire, in plain view of us and, pouring some 
 good coffee into a tin cup, hallowed out, "wouldn't you 
 
 sons of like to have some good coffee?" One 
 
 of our fellows quickly raised his guns and fired, killing 
 the negro. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 133 
 
 This was strictly against orders. We were com- 
 manded not to fire into the enemy without orders lest 
 we bring on a general engagement. The soldier who 
 thus disobeyed orders was arrested and taken to Castle 
 Thunder prison at once. I never knew what was further 
 done with him. No general fight occurred on account 
 of it He said he wouldn't let any nigger talk to him 
 that way. We had no better coffee thai^ rye or corn 
 meal would make and even such as this would make 
 was scarce. 
 
 Daily Growing Worse 
 
 The situation of our army around Richmond and 
 Petersburg was daily growing] more difficult. With 
 plenty of good food I think Gen. Lee could and would 
 have maintained his lines around the two cities for a 
 year or maybe two years longer without reinforcements, 
 but the question of food supply had long been a live 
 one, both among officers and men. 
 
 When November 1st came, we had practically but 
 one railroad from which to get supplies, the one from 
 Weldon, North Carolina. But is became more and 
 more difficult for the quartermasters to ship sufficient 
 supplies from the south. We had been really cut off 
 from obtaining any supplies from over the Fredericks- 
 burg road, because the land had become almost barren 
 from over culture and then from lack of culture. From 
 the west over the Virginia Central, very little could be 
 had. The land was so impoverished it would barely 
 feed its sparsely inhabited people. 
 
 The Valley of Virginia had been and was being 
 robbed of everything that would feed a crow, as the 
 
134 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Federal General put it. The South Side Railroad 
 from Lynchburg might have brought the supplies, but 
 they were not to be had. Inroads and raids had been 
 made here and there from all points of the compass by 
 the enemy. There was not enough supplies in the 
 counties we controlled to feed the army. 
 
 Real hunger was felt by almost all our people. 
 Sacrifices! Yes, greater than I have ever known were 
 made by Southern women. It was a rare case too that 
 any of them spoke ill of the government or wanted us 
 to stop the war and submit. 
 
 Loyal Negroes 
 
 We had a vast number of negro people among 
 us. Our women and children all over the South were 
 not at all afraid of them. Nearly all of them stayed 
 while men went to war. They worked hard on the 
 farms and took care of the white folks. Very few cases 
 of anything but loyalty to their masters ever occurred. 
 
 When the Federals came into a community, though, 
 they had nearly all the servants leave home and go with 
 them. I have known of a great many cases where the 
 black men and women refused to leave their white folks, 
 preferring to stay and work and take care of them. 
 
 Very often it was that Federal soldiers took negroes 
 away from their homes, by force, saying that these 
 darkies had been slaves so long they did not know 
 any better than to stay slaves. 
 
 Many Federal soldiers honestly sympathized with 
 the negroes when they saw them in these southern homes, 
 and they believed if they would leave they would assert 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 135 
 
 themselves and be happy in knowing themselves to be 
 free men. 
 
 While here I was detailed to work with the en- 
 gineer force. A great many men were thus engaged. 
 Our duty was to fell trees from six inches to twelve or 
 sixteen inches in diameter, trim them up and carry them 
 out to where the wagons could get them. Sometimes 
 a cut would be taken out as long as forty-five or more 
 feet. Enough men would get under the weight to carry 
 it. These timbers were usually of pine, but sometimes 
 of oak and ash timber. They were used in making 
 fortifications. I remember the chief officer, under whom 
 I served, directed that a certain man, a great big fellow, 
 whose name I do not now remember, should carry with 
 me. We used the handspike and were on opposite sides 
 of the log. This fellow weighed about one hundred 
 and eighty-five pounds and was a great boaster about 
 his ability to lift. I weighed about one hundred and 
 thirty-two. This fellow was very anxious to pull me 
 down in the lifting and sometimes I saw lots of stars 
 in daylight, but I was always on the watch and almost 
 always succeeded in getting the long end of the hand 
 spike. In this way only, could I lift against this man. 
 The fellow worried about the matter a good deal and 
 believed me to be the strongest man for my weight 
 that he had ever seen. 
 
 Our camp was in low ground between the fort and 
 the river and as I remember we had a great deal of rain, 
 and when November came in, we had chilly weather 
 and an insufficient amount of wood for fire, and clothing 
 and food to make us comfortable. 
 
136 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 Camouflage 
 
 Our interior lines behind which we stood to pro- 
 tect Richmond were about thirty-five miles long. The 
 Federals had in front of us, at times, about one hundred 
 and seventy thousand men. Their force in front of 
 Petersburg was about one hundred and twenty-five 
 thousand men. We resorted to double quickening our 
 bands along the lines and to the making of fires and 
 other things to leave the impression that we had a much 
 larger number of troops than we actually had. 
 
 There was no time between October 15th and Jan- 
 uary, 1865 but that our lines might have been rushed 
 in a hundred different places by the Federals with 
 twenty-five thousand men and the city taken. 
 
 Gen. Lee and his Lieutenants handled the army 
 in such a way that the enemy believed we had two or 
 three times the force that we had. All this too on less 
 than half rations. I have said that during the late 
 fall of 1864 and during the remainder of the winter, 
 our supplies for the army about Richmond and Peters- 
 burg were all too small because the enemy had succeeded 
 in cutting practically all of our transportation from the 
 south except by one railroad. 
 
 There were very frequent skirmishes along and 
 around the lines on both sides of the river. 
 
 I have not attempted to give anything like a de- 
 tailed account of the operations in front of Richmond 
 during this year 1864, first because much of it could 
 only be had by a lengthy looking up of authority for 
 the official statements of occurrences and in the second 
 place I am intending only to give, for the most part, 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 137 
 
 some little sketches of things that occurred that might 
 not otherwise be told. 
 
 A Dark Christmas 
 
 I think that Christmas, 1864, in and about Rich- 
 mond was both in the city and on the lines, about as 
 devoid of comfort and cheer as any Christmas that Rich- 
 mond ever experienced. The city was constantly menac- 
 ed by an enemy of much greater force than we had. 
 Then a very large number of people both in the army 
 and in the city, had become greatly discouraged and 
 felt that we would never win our independence as a 
 nation. Almost everyone was hungry and did not have 
 enough food to make them comfortable. Then, too, the 
 army contained many thousands of men who knew that 
 their families were suffering for food and they were 
 only restrained by their patriotism from deserting the 
 colors and going home. In addition to this, there were 
 many thousands of non-combatants that could not have 
 even one good meal in twenty-four hours. The fine 
 Christmas dinner which the people had enjoyed, was 
 impossible. The toys and candies, and scores of pleas- 
 ant things that children always enjoyed, was impossible. 
 
 Colonel Street 
 
 In the first part of 1864, I made the acquaintance 
 of a fine old gentleman from the state of Mississippi, 
 by the name of Col. Street. President Davis and this 
 man were very firm friends. Col. Street was Mayor of 
 Vicksburg and Mr. Davis practiced law in his Court. 
 There was an abiding friendship which lasted during 
 
138 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 the lifetime of the President. I think it was in Febru- 
 ary, 1864 when I met Col. Street for the first time. 
 Our liking was mutual, notwithstanding the difference 
 in our ages. The Col. was probably about seventy-five 
 years old at that time, full of life and vim, a celebrated 
 lawyer, a great traveler, of very kindly heart and pleas- 
 ing address. I felt a great liking for the man and also 
 felt much honored when he invited me to his house for 
 dinner and afterwards wanted that I would make his 
 house my home. I think Col. Street refugeed with about 
 forty of his servants to Richmond in 1863. His wife 
 was dead and I think he had no children living. Col. 
 Street was a wise man and a statesman. It was said 
 that he was the confidential advisor of the President. 
 I often met him and always felt better for having 
 known him. 
 
 Transferred 
 
 I have referred to the fact that I had made several 
 applications for a transfer to another regiment engaged 
 in service fronting north West Virginia. But in each 
 case as I have above recounted, my application had been 
 disapproved because the Captain of my company al- 
 ways disapproved of my getting a transfer. Late in 
 1864, being under the command of Maj. Gen. Custis 
 Lee, and having some social acquaintance with him. 
 I went over to his headquarters and advised with him 
 about the matter. He was very kind and finding that 
 Gen. Pemberton, the commander of the District of 
 Richmond, had refused my application because Capt. 
 Barlow had disapproved, he said that if he was in my 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 139 
 
 place he would write Gen. R. E. Lee, and explain the 
 situation and he thought that would get it. This I 
 did and my application was returned to the battalion 
 approved, although Capt. Barlow had turned it down. 
 I had certain evidence that my application had been 
 returned with the approval of Gen. Lee, but the Maj. 
 of my battalion and the Captain of my company de- 
 cided they would not give it to me. I waited to hear 
 from them for several days after I knew that the paper 
 had come back from Gen. Lee, with his approval and 
 then I decided to go, in spite of their withholding the 
 paper. 
 
 Therefore on the seventh or the ninth of January, 
 1865, I asked for a twenty-four hour pass to go to 
 Richmond. This was the longest time for which a 
 pass could be obtained. 
 
 After reaching the city, I hunted up my friend 
 Col. Street and told him I wanted a pass to go to 
 Gordonsville and related the circumstances to him. He 
 said that he would go with me. He took me to Gen. 
 Winder's office. Winder was at that time Provost Mar- 
 shall and in command of the city of Richmond. When 
 we entered the office. Col. Street introduced me to an 
 officer as his friend Maj. Cammack. He ordered that 
 he give me a passport over the Virginia Central to 
 Gordonsville. The officer was very clever and ordered 
 it written at once. While this was being done he con- 
 versed with me very pleasantly and wished me a happy 
 trip. 
 
 I bade Col. Street good bye about eleven o'clock and 
 took the train at 17th and Main for Gordonsville, which 
 I reached between two and three o'clock that afternoon. 
 
140 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OP 
 
 I do not remember how far below Gordonsville in the 
 direction of Orange Court house that I found my old 
 Regiment, the 20th Cavalry, on the twenty-third of 
 December. Previous to my arrival the brigade, or a 
 considerable part of it, had an engagement with the 
 enemy, known as the battle of Gordonsville. The officers 
 and men of m}^ regiment were glad to see me. 
 
 Rejoining My Regiment 
 
 I explained to Col. Arnett how it came about that 
 I reported in the manner I did. He was very glad 
 I had decided to come back to the regiment. Some days 
 after this Capt. Barlow, sent a letter to Col. Arnett, 
 asking if I was with his Regiment and requesting that 
 I be sent back to Richmojid. Col. Arnett answered 
 him and said, "Yes, he is here and if you send for him 
 you would best send as much as a brigade of soldiers 
 if you expect to take him back." 
 
 Shortly after this our Regiment went to Hightown 
 in Highland County to get feed for our horses and wait 
 there for mounts, a great many of the men having lost 
 their horses during the last campaign. 
 
 The animals we had were very poor and not able 
 to carry us. There is probably no better place in this 
 country for stock in winter, because the land is rich 
 and particularly adapted to the growth of the finest 
 blue grass I ever saw. When the ground is not covered 
 deeply with snow in winter both cattle and horses can 
 get an abundance of luscious green grass near the 
 ground. This was a fine place to have our Cavalry 
 horses in winter and particularly so because we could 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 141 
 
 get but very little grain to feed them. Rations for 
 ourselves were hard to get and we did not have much 
 variety of food. 
 
 One of the men and I went to a farm house looking 
 for dinner one day. Finding that a widow lived with 
 her little girl and two boys, ten and twelve years old 
 we proposed to cut up into firewood some trees near 
 her house and in return we would want something to 
 eat occasionally. This she readily agreed to give us. 
 Well, my partner was a strong man and a good wood 
 chopper, and as the lady had plenty to eat we fared 
 sumptuously for a couple of weeks. 
 
 We had a young man in our command who was a 
 bright, jolly fellow, possessed of a fairly good education 
 and a good deal of literary ability and with this he 
 had a keen perception of humor and was usually the 
 life of the party. 
 
 A Good Joker 
 
 We were, as as I have said, hard put to it for 
 enough rations to live on. About fourteen of us occu- 
 pied the kitchen of an old abandoned farm house. One 
 evening the above mentioned young fellow said, "Boys 
 there has been a diabolical crime committed in this 
 community recently and I have gotten on to it and 
 lest something happens to me, (as I am the only wit- 
 ness) I have written down here and think you should 
 be in possession of the facts.'' Wliereupon all the 
 boys became quiet and on tiptoe of expectation. 
 
 He began a very beautiful description of the fine 
 little valley in which we were encamped and told about 
 its settlement giving the names of a number of the 
 
142 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 settlers and the present occupants of the farms ad- 
 jacent to us. The story went on to say that one even- 
 ing recently two men were seen by him to come through 
 the field about one hundred yards from where we now 
 stood. They stopped just after they crossed the fence 
 at the roadside. They whispered to each other for two 
 or three minutes and one of them drew a long keen 
 looking knife from under his coat and he could see by 
 the light of the moon that it shone like burnished silver. 
 Presently a noise was heard not far away on the road 
 as though someone was approaching. He felt vile 
 murder was about to be committed by these ruffians, 
 but he was frozen witb fright. He felt that his life 
 would in all probability be taken if he should let his 
 presence be known by an outcry that would put the 
 coming one on his guard. He was torn by conflicting 
 feelings. He had recognized one of the villians and 
 knew him to be a man that loved bloodshed and he was 
 unarmed. He scarcely could contain himself but dared 
 not make a noise. It was probably only a minute or so, 
 but it seemed an age to the fellow, when he heard the 
 men move and saw them jump into the road and saw 
 one of the scoundrels raise his arm and strike. He 
 could scarcely retain his quietude any longer. He heard 
 a terrible groan and jumped into the road quickly and 
 found one of farmer Ruffner's hundred and fifty pound 
 hogs, bleeding to death from a deep gash cut in his 
 throat. 
 
 Defending Staunton 
 
 In the early spring not later than March 10th, we 
 received orders to move to the valley to prevent Sheri- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 143 
 
 dan from taking and occupying Staunton, Virginia, and 
 wiping out the small army of Gen. Early. Not more 
 than three fifths of the command was mounted. Our 
 horses had broken down, worn out, and many of them 
 were too far gone to recuperate, during our stay at 
 Hightown. "We moved on over to Augusta County, the 
 intention being to strike Sheridan in the flank and har- 
 rass him as much as possible. 
 
 Capt. Camp took out a detail of ten men, of whom 
 I was one, to go down through Augusta County and 
 impress a sufficient number of horses for our use. He 
 was instructed to give warrants or orders on the gov- 
 ernment to the owners. 
 
 I remember we came to a house not far from I\Iossy 
 Creek, where we were informed that the farmer was not 
 at home. We knew he was known as a Union man and 
 we supposed he had gone to the enemy. We were met 
 with a flat refusal to let any of the horses go, although 
 they had several very good ones on the farm. 
 
 We saw two women, the mother and her daughter. 
 We took one horse for immediate use, promising to re- 
 turn the animal in two weeks. They refused to receive 
 an order for the price of the animal. One of those 
 women followed us a half mile with a gun trying to 
 shoot us. Nearly all along this valley near the mount- 
 ains were numerous families who were dis-loyal to the 
 South. Some of the people were Dunkards or Friends 
 who were conscientiously opposed to war, and the gov- 
 ernment did not force such into the Army. Some, how- 
 ever, were opposed to the South and in every way pos- 
 sible gave information to the enemy and often gave 
 out stories to the detriment of their southern neighbors 
 
144 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 causing some to be killed or made prisoners and their 
 property confiscated or destroyed. 
 
 There were very many of these people who were 
 really bitter enemies to our cause, but they were, in 
 very many cases, allowed to live among our people 
 entirely unmolested and yet, as we had good reason 
 to believe were doing everything they could against our 
 cause and government. 
 
 That day, I remember, we came to a large farm, 
 where they had seventeen horses. The gentleman was 
 at home and his wife and two young ladies, his daught- 
 ers. 
 
 This gentleman was a breeder of horses and had a 
 few extra fine animals, one especially was the fastest 
 racker I had even seen. 
 
 The Lieut. Col. of our regiment told Capt. Camp 
 and myself, that he was especially anxious to have that 
 horse for himself. The animal was an iron gray in 
 color, seven years old and weighed about eleven hun- 
 dred and fifty pounds, probably the best trained horse 
 in the valley of Virginia. Every member of the family 
 feared we would take him and the master of the house 
 began to argue and insist. He said if we would leave 
 Abdallah, he would give us three other horses. 
 
 The Capt. felt that our duty was to take the horse 
 with us. I objected and finally told him, I would 
 have nothing to do with taking him, and at last the 
 Capt. agreed to leave him. All three of the ladies were 
 at the barn crying bitterly because they thought we 
 were going to take their favorite horse. "We left him 
 and I think we left about as happy a family as I ever 
 saw. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 145 
 
 Grandfather Bruce 
 
 Sheridan went down the valley that day, having 
 captured and destroyed Early's force at "Waynesboro. 
 It was here that Gen. Wm. Harmon, the most famous 
 lawyer of Staunton, was killed. Mr. Bruce, a man at 
 that time more than ninety years old, who was my wife 's 
 grandfather, was walking up and down the porch at 
 Esq. Bruce 's house. Mr. Bruce was gone and there 
 was none of the family at home except the ladies and 
 the servants. They all took refuge in the cellar, but 
 grandfather would not go. When his daughter-in-law, 
 Mrs. Bruce, came up and urged him to go to the cellar 
 he would not, and said, "Why should such a man as 
 I flee from bullets and hide myself." He had been a 
 soldier in his youth, was a Scotchman, and would not 
 hide himself from danger. 
 
 Waynesboro, is a small town near the foot of the 
 Blue Eidge mountains, the North river running imme- 
 diately west of it, vrith a steep bank overlooking the 
 town from the west. The wagon train was headed 
 toward the west with the troops drawn up on the west 
 side of the river. Sheridan attacked with a much larg- 
 er force and drove our men into the river drowning 
 many of them and capturing a considerable number 
 of them. The wagon train was captured and it was 
 said that Gen. Early went to Richmond with less than 
 fifty men. 
 
 Wliatever military critics may say condemnatory 
 of Gen. Earlys' work as a successful leader of an army, 
 it cannot be denied that on many fields he showed mili- 
 tary genius of a high degree, and his ability to fight 
 
146 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 and his willingness to do so, were never questioned 
 by his solders, or newspaper critics. 
 
 He was a soldier in his youth after he left the 
 military academy, and he served in Mexico as Adj. 
 of a Regiment. After the Mexican war he went into 
 his law practice at Liberty, Virginia. After the war 
 of the sitxies he practiced his profession in Lynchburg, 
 Virginia. 
 
 That portion of our brigade that I had been with 
 at Hightown mounted itself on the way, as well and 
 quickly as we could and hurried to intercept Sheridan 
 on his retreat down the valley, after the Waynesboro 
 fight. Our only hope was to strike him in the flank 
 and worry him somewhat in his retreat. We knew 
 we did not have half force enough to get into a general 
 engagement with this famous command at that time. 
 
 When we reached the valley pike, we found that 
 the Federal rear guards had passed that point several 
 hours before our arrival. 
 
 At this point, during the most exciting events of 
 the war, dealing with the siege around Richmond and 
 the stirring finale of the Confederacy, father's story 
 abruptly ends. 
 
 There is evidence that he was arranging to com- 
 plete the narrative when his last sickness overtook 
 him. 
 
 We know, in a large measure, what events followed. 
 
 Lee was finally overwhelmed by numbers. The 
 Federals kept on encroaching upon the fortifications 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 147 
 
 around Richmond. Neither supurb generalship nor 
 the intense loyalty and fighting ability of a band of 
 soldiers, such as the world has rarely seen, could com- 
 pensate for lack of munitions, food and men, in the 
 face of overwhelming numbers and equipment. 
 
 The final chapter came with the surrender of Lee 
 at Appamattox in April, 1865. 
 
 Father was not within the fortifications of Rich- 
 mond when this occurred. At his own request and 
 contrary to the wishes of Capt. Barlow he had been 
 transferred to his own regiment in the Valley of Vir- 
 ginia. 
 
 He has related many times that, while he was not 
 a "fire-eater" and did not have a thirst for blood, that 
 yet, when they heard of the surrender, he and his 
 comrades could not believe it. They would not believe 
 it, in fact. They held counsels of war and planned that 
 if Lee had actually surrendered, they would start to 
 N. C. where there was a large body of Confederate 
 forces, would form a new nucleus and keep the fight 
 up, because they were sure of victory in the end. 
 
 After fuller information of the complete dismem- 
 berment of the Confederate forces had reached them, 
 they gave up this war-like plan, accepted honorable 
 discharges from the army, and each man, dispirited, 
 broken, overpowered, but still with head up and the 
 fires of loyalty burning as brightly as ever, started on 
 his way home to re-build what four years of bloody 
 conflict had torn down. 
 
 Father's health was so impaired from wounds and 
 constant exposures, that he was not able to undertake 
 the trip to his home in Harrison County. Such money 
 
148 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 as he had received was worthless, so he could not pay 
 his way on the train. Therefore he went for a rest 
 to the always hospitable home of his Uncle Peter Manly 
 in Fluvanna County, where he remained until early 
 in June. 
 
 Having recuperated sufificienth" he started walking 
 the three hundred and fifty miles across the mountains 
 from Fluvanna County to his home in Harrison County, 
 which place he reached sore and weary after a month 
 of continuous walking. 
 
 There are no words that express the joy of his 
 father and mother upon his return. The only thing 
 that marred the joy of the family was that his brother 
 Lucius, who had gone forth with him from Clarksburg 
 on the 18th day of May over four years before, was 
 now in a poorly marked grave, where his body had been 
 placed following the battle of Cedar Mountain in Aug- 
 ust. 1862. 
 
 He found his father's little farm in fairly good 
 shape and he resumed his work on the farm. 
 
 It would not be fitting that his plain and frank 
 story of his experiences in the war should be ended 
 with a eulogy by the writer of this completing note. 
 
 In entering the Confederate army he was inspired 
 purely by love for his state and the cause it had es- 
 poused. He fought a good fight. He kept the faith. 
 He fought in the day when manhood and chivalry 
 dictated the rules of war. He came out of the con- 
 flict broken in body but unbroken in spirit. 
 
 He did his fighting during the course of the con- 
 flict, from 1861 to 1865. and then stopped. 
 
 — L. H. C. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK l49 
 
 From Eighteen Sixty-five to Nineteen-twenty 
 
 It was no doubt the intention of the writer of the 
 foregoing personal recollections of the war, to com- 
 plete his task by filling in a few of the salient facts of 
 the intervening years, but with only brief notice his 
 health began rapidly to fail in the summer of 1919 and 
 there was hardly a time from then until his death, on 
 May 6th, 1920 when it was possible for him to continue 
 the narrative. 
 
 For this reason a few of the important facts of 
 his life are given. 
 
 After Appamattox the outlook for the Southern 
 soldier under the reconstruction period and, with the 
 wreck of his home land facing him, was indeed gloomy. 
 
 But John Henry Cammack was a born optimist. 
 There was always a cheery fringe to the cloud. He 
 accepted the arbitrament of the sword and abode by 
 the decision. He quit fighting when Lee surrendered, 
 though as intimated in the last chapter, he wanted 
 to be good and sure that the fight was all over before 
 he laid down his arms. 
 
 After a rest in Fluvanna County, in the Spring 
 of 1865, he trudged his weary way across the mountains 
 to his father's home in Harrison County, now West 
 Virginia, and resumed his work on the little farm. 
 
 In October 1866 he was married to Mary Jane 
 Fox, and they began housekeeping in a cottage on the 
 banks of Elk Creek in Clarksburg. 
 
 He had learned the cigar making business in his 
 early youth, having worked at this trade in Staunton, 
 Virginia and at Lexington. 
 
150 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 In the early part of 1868 he moved to Williams- 
 town, W. Va. and started a cigar making business of 
 his own. On account of living conditions and work, 
 he moved to Marietta, Ohio, for a time and then back 
 to Williamstown, where he built a home. 
 
 It was at WiUiamstown that he met Rev. W. P. 
 Walker, who was at that time pastor of the Williams- 
 town and Willow Island churches, and, although not 
 a church member, he became an ardent admirer and 
 warm personal friend of the pastor. 
 
 He was converted and joined the Williamstown 
 Baptist church in 1869 and the following year was 
 elected a deacon, which office he retained in the Wil- 
 liamstown and later on in the Huntington church for 
 over half a century. 
 
 Three children were born, Lucius H., John Willie 
 and Charles W. Willie died in infancy. 
 
 In 1875, in company with Capt. As. Athey and 
 some other friends he bought the steamer Cataraugus 
 and, for a time abandoning the cigar business, shipped 
 as clerk on the steamer which was plying the Little 
 Kanawha between Parkersburg and Elizabeth. 
 
 This experience lasted for a couple of years, after 
 which he sold his interest, moved to Marietta, Ohio, and 
 re-entered the cigar business. 
 
 His physician insisted that the close confinement 
 of the cigar factory and his tendency to smoke too much 
 was injuring his health and advised him to get out. 
 Brother Walker had, in the meantime, been called to 
 take charge of the little church which had been organiz- 
 ed in Huntington, a new town down the river from 
 Marietta, one hundred and thirty miles. He began 
 
PRIVATE JOHN fiBNRY CAMMACK 151 
 
 urging his friend Cammack to move to Huntington 
 and enter some other line of business. 
 
 Finally arrangements were made for the move to 
 Huntington. In connection with a Mr. Campbell, the 
 Dana stock of ladies and gentlemen's wearing apparel 
 was bought and on the twenty-seventh day of February, 
 1878 the family, the household goods and the stock of 
 merchandise were shipped on the steamer Katie Stock- 
 dale for Huntington, arriving there before daylight 
 on the morning of the 28th. The family quartered at 
 the leading hotel, the Continental, owned by Felix 
 Ware and located at the corner of Second Avenue and 
 Eighth Street. This building has, in more recent years, 
 been used by the Union Mission, of which organization, 
 a son, C. W. Cammack, has been president. 
 
 The family moved into one-half of a double house 
 on Fourth Avenue, just below eighth street. This house 
 is one of the spots that has not suffered any change in 
 forty years, but stands today, exactly as it did in 
 February, 1878, though very differently surrounded. 
 
 The wearing apparel business was started in the 
 Lallance building, on the corner of Third Avenue and 
 Eighth Street. At this time the Baptist church, under 
 the leadership of Dr. Walker, held its services in the 
 room upstairs over the store. 
 
 In 1890 he quit the merchandise business and in 
 company with his old comrade and friend, J. N. Potts, 
 entered the Real Estate and Insurance business in a 
 building where the Deardoff-Sisler store now stands. 
 
 Later on he went into the same business in part- 
 nership with his son C. W. Cammack, which relation 
 existed uninterruptedly until the time of his death. 
 
152 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 In the spring of 1919 his health began to show a 
 marked decline. He was a soldier all the way through. 
 The outlook was always cheerful. He did not com- 
 plain except when in great pain, and then uniformly 
 laughed the matter off as of no importance. 
 
 Those about him could see readily that he was not 
 improving and consultation with doctors and specialists 
 was not reassuring. 
 
 The average man would probably have gone to bed 
 and given up hope, but he did not. Never for a moment 
 did he admit to anyone about him that he thought he 
 might not get well, until a few weeks before his final 
 caU. 
 
 That front porch to the little bungalow at 638 
 Fifth Avenue, where he spent the most of his days for 
 a year and a half, was a cheerful spot and the mecca 
 for hundreds of visitors. They always found him smil- 
 ing, hospitable, thoughtful, always joking, never sad 
 or depressed. 
 
 The culmination of the tragedy came on the even- 
 ing of May sixth, 1920, after great torture, and yet, 
 only seven days before, he had lain on his cot and taken 
 an active part in the deliberations of Camp Garnett 
 Confederate Veterans, which body of comrades had held 
 its monthly meetings for a long time on this porch. 
 
 We would not write his epitaph. It is engraved 
 in the hearts of his family and friends as imperishably 
 as if chiseled in stone. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 153 
 
 Press Notices and Other Papers Relating to 
 the Life and Death of John Henry Cam- 
 mack. 
 
 From the Herald-Dispatch, Friday, May 7, 1920. 
 
 John Henry Cammack is dead. The end came to 
 this honored Huntingtonian at six o'clock, Thursday 
 evening at his residence. 638 Fifth Avenue. He was 
 76 years old. 
 
 Death followed an illness which began more than 
 a year ago, but which was so resisted by this man of 
 unconquerable spirit that it confined him to his death 
 bed only about two weeks. The extremity of his sick- 
 ness developed about the beginning of the present week 
 and from that time it was realized that the end was 
 very near. 
 
 Watching beside him in these trying last hours, 
 as she had walked beside through a happy married life 
 of 54 years, was his wife, who, despite her years and 
 the weight of her sorrow at this separation, is bearing 
 up bravely. 
 
 His sons, Lucius H. Cammack and C. W. Cammack, 
 were also with him, when the end came. 
 
 Provisional funeral arrangements effected last 
 night fix the time for the services at 4 o'clock, Saturday 
 
1&4 PERSONAL RECOLLEC5TIONS OF 
 
 afternoon. The funeral will probably be at the resi- 
 dence. Interment will be at Spring Hill cemetery. 
 
 In these days of intensive religious activities among 
 the young people of the land stress is being laid on the 
 development of the fourfold life, a development which 
 had a living exponent in John Henry Cammack. who, 
 as a man, soldier, citizen and churchman, stood forth 
 throughout life as one of whom it might be truly said 
 that he stood four-square to every wind. 
 
 GALLANT SOLDIEE 
 
 Among distinctions in life were that he was a gal- 
 lant soldier of the Confederacy, 50 years a deacon in 
 the Baptist church, for 15 years commander of Camp 
 Garnett and for 40 years a citizen of Huntington, hon- 
 orable and without reproach, dealing uprightly with all 
 and showing mercy and kindness wherever he might. 
 
 John Henry Cammack was born on a farm in 
 Rockingham county, Virginia, on December 22, 1843. 
 
 As a boy he worked in Staunton, Va., and was 
 there when the Chesapeake di Ohio railway was building 
 in 1857. During this residence in Staunton he was 
 a Sunday school pupil of Mary Baldwin, principal of 
 Mary Baldwin Seminary. For a time previous to the 
 war he was at Lexington, Va., and there his Sunday 
 school teacher was Professor T. J. (Stonewall) Jackson. 
 
 At the age of 17, May 18, 1861, he enlisted in the 
 Confederate army at Clarksburg, Harrison county, un- 
 der Captain A. M. Turner. His first engagement was 
 with Colonel Partridge at the taking of Grafton, May 
 21, 1861. He was in the first battle of Phillipi, June 1, 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 155 
 
 1861, and his regiment, the Thirty-first Virginia, was 
 on the famous Laurel hill retreat through Maryland, 
 finally making a stand at Monterey, Va., July 18, 1861. 
 
 WITH GENERAL GARNETT 
 
 He was with General Garnett (from whom Gar- 
 nett Camp, United Confederate Veterans, took its 
 name) 20 minutes before that officer was killed at Car- 
 rick's Ford, on Cheat river. He later served under 
 General Henry R. Jackson and Stonewall Jackson. 
 
 In January, 1862, wounded and sick, he was sent 
 to a hospital as incurable, but within a few weeks he 
 rejoined his regiment and took part in the seven days 
 battle around Richmond. 
 
 His service with the Confederate army ended only 
 with the surrender at Appomattox. 
 
 During the war his fathers' family resided near 
 Clarksburg, and it was while on a visit home, to ac- 
 complish which he ran the lines of the enemy that he 
 met Molly Jane Fox, then a house guest of his mother. 
 This romantic meeting resulted in the marriage of the 
 young couple on October 7, 1866. 
 
 For a number of years after the war Mr, and Mrs. 
 Cammack lived at Williamstown. When they came to 
 Huntington, journeying down the Ohio river by steam- 
 boat, they found a village of 2,000 people. Mr. Cam- 
 mack entered the clothing business at Eighth street and 
 Third avenue, but in 1890 he entered the real estate 
 business with his old comrade, J. N. Potts. In more 
 recent years he was associated with his son, C. W. Cam- 
 mack, and W. L. Reece. As a real estate operator he 
 
156 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 was a pioneer on lower Fourth avenue, and on the South 
 Side. His business career was never spectacular, but 
 was so consistently successful that he accumulated an 
 estate of no inconsiderable proportions. 
 
 WAS CHURCHMAN 
 
 Mr. Cammack became a member of the Baptist 
 church in 1869 at Williamstown, where he was ordained 
 as deacon in 1870. During this long church life he 
 had but two pastors, Dr. AA". P. Walker and Dr. M. L. 
 Wood. Dr. Walker was pastor at Williamstown before 
 he came to Huntington to become pastor of the Fifth 
 Avenue Baptist church. 
 
 In 1883 Mr. Cammack helped build the old Fifth 
 Avenue Baptist church at Fifth avenue and Tenth 
 street. He helped remodel and enlarge this church in 
 1895 and was on the building committee which directed 
 the construction of the new Temple at the corner of 
 Fifth avenue and Twelfth street, dedicated in April, 
 1919. 
 
 He was a Sunday school man and worker, and in 
 this field he sowed seed which brought forth much fruit, 
 as he organized the Sunday school which grew into the 
 Twentieth Street Baptist cliurch, and later organized 
 a Sunday school at Central City, from which nucleus 
 the Washington Avenue Baptist church was evolved. 
 
 Much of the best thought and tenderest considera- 
 tion, especially during the closing years of his life, was 
 for his old comrades of the Confederate army. For 
 a year before his death Garnett Camp met regularly 
 at his home. The last meeting was held there on Satur- 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 157 
 
 day, April 29. Lying in his bed he took an active part 
 in the session and had a parting word with each member 
 of the camp. 
 
 He is survived by his widow, Mary J. Cammack, 
 two sons, L. H. and C. W. Cammack, two brothers, 
 George A. Cammack of ]\It. Vernon, Mo., Charles A. 
 Cammack of Ray, Colorado and two sisters, Mrs. Rebecca 
 Flint of Lincoln, Neb., and Mrs. Nellie McKeean of 
 Schuyler, Neb. A niece, Miss Irene Flint, has been a 
 resident of Huntington for several years and was con- 
 stantly with him during his long illness. 
 
 Editorial from The Herald-Dispatch, Saturday May, 8. 
 JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 
 
 A sturdy pillar in the early foundation of Hunt- 
 ington is fallen. John Henry Cammack, who came 
 to Huntington in the first years of manhood, and to 
 whom it was given to see the city of his choice and 
 liis love scale the heights of progress, abundant in 
 people, abundant in civic and relig'ioiLs institutions, 
 has finished a goodly life, and now sleeps the sleep of 
 the just. 
 
 While a man of peace and one whose life was 
 devoted to the upbuilding of peaceful institutions, Mr. 
 Cammack 's first contact with the stern realities of the 
 world impressed him to the last day of his seventy-six 
 years. For it was his opportunity — and none who knew 
 him well could say that lie regarded it in any other 
 light — it was his opportunity, we repeat, to cast his 
 
158 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 youthful fortunes with the South when fateful secti- 
 onal warfare arrayed the sons of America in deadly 
 hostility. 
 
 To be permitted to march under the glorious ban- 
 ners of Lee and Stonewall Jackson was a privilege of 
 which he never ceased to be proud, and the disciplined 
 mind and erect figure, the fruits of that experience, 
 were strikingly apparent through all the long years 
 between Appomattox and the hour of final rest, which 
 came early Thursday evening. When the war ended 
 he accepted the verdict ; and, while cherishing with 
 never-failing devotion the ideals for which he fought, 
 he venerated the Stars and Stripes with true patriotic 
 fervor. Only Americans could fight as the men of the 
 South fought. They needed no repatriation when it 
 Avas over. 
 
 In his life in Huntington Mr. Cammack exempli- 
 fied the highest of citizen virtues. Dignified, kindly in 
 demeanor, he won the respect that leads to liking and 
 the confidence upon which true friendships rest. 
 
 Probably, in all his varied experiences, his career 
 as a churchman stamped itself most clearly upon the 
 community. From early manhood to the days of in- 
 firmity he was a tower of strength in Fifth Avenue 
 Baptist church. From a struggling organization whose 
 first meetings were held in upstairs halls with smoking 
 oil lamps for lights, he followed this inspired organiza- 
 tion through the varying stages of its upward fortunes, 
 and enjoyed the blessed privilege of seeing it installed 
 in the magnificent temple it now occupies. Young 
 men went into that church with young Deacon Cam- 
 mack, and they grew old with him, day by day, Sunday 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 159 
 
 by Sunday, witnessing his never-failing devotion, his 
 never-shaken faith, his unfaltering trust. 
 
 It is because such records are so few that they 
 are noteworthy, and it is because of the life that made 
 this record that John Henry Cammack's memory as 
 a citizen, a churchman, a father and a husband will be 
 cherished as long as any of those live who have been 
 touched by its elevating influence. 
 
160 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 THE FINAL SERVICE 
 
 Herald-Dispatch, Sunday, May 9. 
 
 ' ' Beloved, farewell ! We will meet in the new 
 morning ! ' ' 
 
 It was with these words that Dr. Matthew L. Wood, 
 over come by his own emotions and forced to close, end- 
 ed his discourse over the remains of John Henry Cam- 
 mack. It was a beautiful and fitting eulogy which he 
 pronounced at the funeral of this, his friend and coun- 
 selor, held Saturday afternoon at four o'clock at the 
 Fifth Avenue Baptist church. He explained at the 
 outset that it was his duty as pastor of the church which 
 made it necessary for him to occupy the pulpit on this 
 occasion instead of sitting, according to the promptings 
 of his heart, in the front pew beside the sons of the dead 
 man. And the grief which he felt at the taking away 
 of ]\fr. Cammack was, in a large measure, reflected in 
 the hearts of the hundreds of people gathered for the 
 final tribute. 
 
 The altar of the beautiful temple in the building 
 of which Mr. Cammack had a part, was literally banked 
 with flowers which testified to the love of the many 
 senders for Mr. Cammack. 
 
 The mourning friends were shown to their places 
 in the pews by the deacons of the church, of whom the 
 decedent was one for fifty years. 
 
 I 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 161 
 
 Preceding the body into the church came the hon- 
 orary pall bearers, members of Garnett Camp, United 
 Confederate Veterans, of which Mr. Cammack was com- 
 mander for fifteen years. There was almost a one 
 hundred per cent attendance on the part of the old 
 soldiers, now too feeble to take other than an honorary 
 part in the laying away of their comrades. 
 
 Next came the active pall bearers, members of the 
 Sunday school class which Mr. Cammack taught for 
 twenty years. 
 
 Huntington Chapter No. 150, and Jackson-Lee 
 Chapter, U. D. C. occupied spaces reserved for them. 
 Each chapter came as a body. 
 
 Mrs. J. Harold Ferguson was at the organ and as 
 the funeral party entered she played "Come Ye Dis- 
 consolate. ' ' 
 
 The opening prayer was offered by Dr. S. Roger 
 Tyler, rector of Trinity Episcopal church. 
 
 The songs were rendered by a quartette composed 
 of Mrs. C. E. Haworth, Mrs. Carrie S. CoUard, Randall 
 Reynolds and J. R. Marcum The opening song was 
 ** Sunset and Evening Star." 
 
 Dr. Tyler's prayer followed and then a second 
 song "Home of the Soul," and the reading of the scrip- 
 ture by Dr. Wood. 
 
 OLD COMRADE 'S TRIBUTE 
 
 Rev. W. J. Cocke, old comrade-in-arms and friend 
 of many years standing, then spoke words of tribute 
 to the memory of Mr. Cammack. 
 
 "He was a Christian" he said, "and that means 
 he was Christly — he was a gentleman — he had run his 
 
162 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 course well. "Comrades", he said, turning to the mem- 
 bers of Garnett Camp, "we soon shall clasp his hand 
 once more on the other shore. He was a faithful sol- 
 dier of his country; he was an equally faithful soldier 
 of God. We should feel no sorrow for him, but should 
 rather rejoice that he has gone over the river to rest 
 in the shade of the trees." 
 
 Following his remarks he offered prayer for the 
 long continuation of the influence of the life of Deacon 
 Cammack. 
 
 Then the quartette sang, "Lead Me Gently", after 
 which Dr. Wood took his place and began speaking. 
 
 First expressing the grief which prompted him 
 to be a mourner, rather than a speaker, he then referred 
 to an early Christian whose name was Joseph, but who 
 was surnamed by his brethern, Barnabus, or the son of 
 consolation — and who occupied a place, in proportion, 
 much like that accorded to the spirit of God — that of 
 comforter and helper, and of whom it was said he was 
 a good man, full of faith and the spirit, and much people 
 through him were led to the Lord." 
 
 To this man Dr. Wood likened the subject of his 
 eulogy, carrying the comparison further by saying that 
 like his scriptural prototype, Mr. Cammack went about 
 doing good. 
 
 "To speak of his life in that inner circle, wherein 
 he was best known and most loved," said Dr. Wood, 
 "It may be said that for more than a half century of 
 wedded life he was a devoted lover: as tender and soli- 
 citous in the latter years as he was when as a young 
 and gallant, though warworn soldier he led his bride to 
 the altar. 
 
PRIVATE JOHN HENRY CAMMACK 163 
 
 "In his broader intercourse he was a courtly gen- 
 tleman, who carried himself with the unselfish dignity 
 of a royal prince. He was never happier than when 
 he could stretch forth his hand to help another. And 
 though I fear that in this modern age most of us are 
 too busy for such things, he represented a type of 
 Christian gentleman which this world needs and will 
 always appreciate as one of his greatest assets. 
 
 ' ' He was a brave soldier, who enlisted at seventeen 
 and followed the fortunes of the southern battle flag to 
 Appomattox. His record as a soldier was without a 
 stain. And, coming back from the war he faced life 
 with a courage just as great as that which he evinced 
 in war. 
 
 "Veterans", he said "turning to the little group 
 of gray haired men in the pews reserved for Camp 
 Garnett, "as I talked to him recently he said": 
 
 " 'Say to the veterans that I loved them and that 
 my sincere wish for every one of them is that he shall 
 be a true soldier of Jesus Christ," 
 
 "Don't disappoint him. You loved him. Follow 
 his example. 
 
 "He was devoted to Christ — and because it repre- 
 sented to him the ideals and the ministry of Christ he 
 was devoted to this church. He loved this church. He 
 remembered it in his prayers. His hands were always 
 busy with its tasks. He was a Christian for more than 
 fifty years — a deacon for more than fifty years. He 
 never had but two pastors. One of them, who led him 
 to Christ and baptized him and ordained him as deacon 
 
164 PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF 
 
 went before him — ah, have you thought of the fellow- 
 ship between them now? 
 
 "To me he was a father and a brother; a wise, 
 and faithful and sympathetic co-worker. 
 
 "Last Tuesday evening some of us had the rare 
 privilege of talking with him at a time when he seemed 
 to have gotten a glimpse of the glory of God as it lighted 
 up his sunset hour. 
 
 "He said — Friends if we miss God we miss every- 
 thing — if we have God we have everj^thing. " 
 
 Here the voice of the speaker faltered and he said : 
 "I can't go on." 
 
 Looking down upon the casket he said: 
 
 "Beloved, good-bye, we'll meet in the new morn- 
 ing." 
 
 There were more than fifty automobiles in the 
 procession which followed the remains of this honored 
 man to the grave in Spring Hill cemeterJ^ There, as 
 his body was committed to the earth, the Rev. John K. 
 Hitner, chaplain of Garnett Camp, offered prayer. 
 
IN MEMORIAM 
 
 CAMP GARNETT No. 902, U. C. V.— OUR COiAIRADE AND 
 LATE COIVIMANDER JOHN HENRY CAIVDIACK. 
 
 John Henry Cammack has gone along the path 
 from which there is no turning back, and the world is 
 better because he lived in it. Throughout a long life 
 he has been for each succeeding generation, a shining 
 example: his courage and his gentleness have been 
 but the visible evidence of an unfaltering faith in the 
 all powerful divinity and inherent faith in the future, 
 "beyond this place of wrath and tears." 
 
 Comrade Cammack 's devotion to his church was 
 sincere and constant ; being ever among the first in ser- 
 vice, in prayer and in alms. His citizenship has been 
 marked by that integrity which directed all his doings 
 in, life, and he has left behind him a memory which 
 will be cherished by his comrades and fellowmen, who 
 have accorded him love and profound respect. 
 
 It was, however, in his family life that the true 
 beauty of his character shone ; the atmosphere of his 
 home was a benediction and we who have been privileg- 
 ed to call ourselves his comrades, have realized that he 
 was the soul of that home ; at once the spirit of peace 
 and the tower of strength — that rare combination which 
 can come only from a complete self lessness and a deep 
 rooted religious belief. 
 
 He has left to his good wife a memory of a life 
 without fear, and without reproach; to his children a 
 heritage more precious than gold; to his comrades of 
 Camp Garnett a record of fixedness of purpose, fidelity 
 to duty, unfaltering courage, and marked devotion to 
 the principles for which our organization stands. 
 "After life's fitful fever 
 Our Comrade sleeps well." 
 C. L. THOMPSON, 
 J. N. POTTS, 
 JOHN K. HITNER.