Archive Record
Images
Additional Images [31]
Metadata
Title |
John Thomas Parham talks before the A. P. Hill Camp of Confederate Veterans |
Dates of Creation |
September 6, 1894 |
Scope & Content |
John Thomas Parham was born in Prince George County. At age 18, he joined the 32nd Virginia Infantry regiment, Company "C". Eventually, he was detailed as a color sergeant. In 1864 he was commissioned 1st lieutenant. He survived the war. Later in life, he became a member of the Petersburg City Council, a deputy collector of customs, Deputy Sergeant of the City of Petersburg, Virginia, and in 1896 was a newspaper editor. Background. The Maryland Campaign began September 4, 1862, and ended September 19th, fifteen days later. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee led the Army of Northern Virginia into Maryland in order to relieve war-ravaged Virginia, replenish supplies, rally pro-Southern Marylanders, and carry the war North of the Potomac River. The Army of the Potomac, led by Gen. George B. McClellan would follow him, in order to protect Baltimore, to prevent an invasion into Pennsylvania, and to drive Lee out of Maryland. Attributed to the Maryland Campaign are the battles at South Mountain and Sharpsburg (Confederate name) or Antietam (Federal name). The following will be a summary of an address given by John T. Parham to the A.P. Hill Camp of Confederate Veterans, in Petersburg, Virginia, on September 6, 1894. The original document consists of 37 pages, even though the last page is marked 36. There is a page between pages eight and nine that appears to be marked in error and scratched out. All pages are very brittle. The 32nd Virginia Infantry was a part of Semmes Brigade (10th, 53rd Georgia, 15th, 32nd Virginia), McLaws Division (Kershaw's, Cobb's, Semmes, and Barksdale's Brigade). Parham gives a review of the regiment's activities prior to the beginning of the Maryland Campaign. After the battle at Malvern Hill (July 1, 1862), the division camped along the James River and the regiment did picket duty on the Chickahominy River. Prior to the 2nd Battle of Manassas (August 29-30, 1862), the division was ordered to Richmond and hurried to Hanover Junction, from where they began their march North, arriving the day after the great battle. Here Parham saw many dead, both Northern and Southern, and noticed that the dead had been stripped of their clothing. Noticeably the red pants of the dead Zouaves were untouched. The next morning the march continued to Leesburg, Virginia, where the boys from the regiment took apples and roasting ears from local farms. Before leaving Leesburg on September 3, Parham was promoted and took his position as part of the color guard. Parham told the story of a dressy Captain who, while crossing the Potomac River into Maryland territory, to avoid getting wet, mounted himself on a horse belonging to the colonel. The colonel's servant, in charge of the horse, had to share the ride. Both were dumped into the river, when the horse stumbled. Thus the Captain got more than his pants wet. After resting for a few days they then marched through Frederick City (where they found very few Southern sympathizers) and on to South Mountain. Marching all night with only ten-minute rest stops, the division reached Burkettsville, a small village at the foot of South Mountain. With just an hour's respite, the march continued. Crossing at Brownsville Gap (south of Crampton's Gap) they entered into Pleasant Valley. Heading south in the direction of Harper's Ferry, the column finally stopped at the little hamlet of Brownsville. It was Saturday, September 13, 1862. While they gathered apples to cook and hoped for a quiet rest, the drums beat the long roll and once again duty called. They had been ordered back to Brownsville Gap for picket duty. The Federals were reported rapidly approaching from the direction of Frederick City. Parham, as part of the color guard, was positioned on the highest point of the gap along with the reserve force. He slept that night on a smooth flat rock and was able to eat his cooked apples. The next morning Parham witnessed the arrival of the Federal force, which, after reaching Burkittsville, marched toward Crampton's Gap. At that location was Mahone's Brigade. The Virginians held off the Federals but were forced to retreat up the mountain side. Semme's Brigade (Parham included) were ordered to head for Crampton's Gap, where they ran into the retreating forces. The brigade then double- quicked back down into Pleasant Valley, where they established a line of battle to await the Federals. While in line of battle Parham noticed a white haired gentleman, clad in white, riding along the mountainside. He seemed to be watching the enemy's movements as if acting as a scout. The men dubbed him "Old White Coat", but heard he was called Boteler. (Boteler Crossing crosses the Potomac River to the rear of Parham's position). The observer was more than likely a local land owner. While they remained in the line of battle, word arrived that Harper's Ferry (five miles southwest) had surrendered to the Confederates. Thousands of prisoners, commissary stores, arms and munitions were captured. On Tuesday, September 16, Parham and his comrades crossed the Potomac River and entered Harper''s Ferry. Men in the ranks stocked up on meat, cakes and coffee and all were happy to be on the south side of the river. While Parham was gathering rations he received a painful cut on his left arm from a knife carelessly handled by a comrade. Going for aid from the regimental assistant surgeon he receive a sneering remark from the officer. "You got wounded early!" Taking umbrage from the remark Parham informed the officer that it was not an intentional wound and that he could stand up as long as the officer or any other man. The surgeon made no reply but dressed the wound. Parham went on to say that the assistant surgeon was later cashiered from the army for cowardice, because he refused to attend wounded men on the field at Sharpsburg (Antietam). On the evening of September 16 the division was ordered to fall in and start marching. Parham thought they would be marching toward Richmond, but by midnight he found the division was returning to Maryland. Marching in the direction of Sharpsburg, they were to ford the Potomac by daylight at Shepherdstown. Parham felt very bad both mentally and physically as his arm was sore and painful. One of his comrades announced he had dreamt of a terrible battle and that the boys were going to "catch it sure". Arriving at Shepherdstown, Parham left ranks and walked along the sidewalk looking for water from a well. Paying more attention to what was over on the other side of the boarding fence he walked right off a break in the sidewalk and fell. Escaping injury he concluded that he would stop looking for any more wells, and waited until arriving on the banks of the Potomac before getting a drink. Just before the division crossed the river, Parham was approached by the assistant surgeon and was informed that the surgeon could put Parham on the disabled list because of his injury, but this Parham refused. At 8 o'clock Parham's regiment crossed the river and left the road, filed into a field and halted. While there, they could hear the firing of artillery and small arms from the battle being fought at Sharpsburg. After resting a short while all were started off to re-enforce General Early. On the way Parham met and talked to his brother, whom he had not seen for many years and who now was a member of Shumaker's Battery. Closing in on the battlefield the division came under the control of General "Stonewall" Jackson, who ordered McLaw's division to double-quick march over fields, creeks, woods, stonewalls and fences. Arriving at the field of battle, Barksdale's Brigade was sent in first, making their charge across the field in front of the woods beyond. Semme's Brigade (Parham included) would follow in echelon (line of troops in parallel rows with the end of each row projecting further than the one in front). As Parham's regiment moved forward against the heavy fire of shot and shell, he witnessed some of his comrades receive fatal and non-fatal wounds. When ranks became shattered, Parham called out for the men to close on the colors, which they did. When they reached a knoll the line halted, and the men in the front ranks were in danger from their own men firing from the rear ranks. More men fell from enemy fire, with the colors being pierced many times by minie balls, and the flag staff being cut in two. General Semmes locating the Federals behind a stone wall, rose from his position and called for the charge. Following the colors, the regiment stormed forward, and as the men moved forward the enemy dropped back from the wall. Upon securing this position Parham's regiment remained in place the night of September 17 and all day on September 18. Burial details were called out on September 18 and one man found his dead brother. Sadly, all he could do was to bury him in Maryland soil. Early on the morning of September 19, the army fell back and recrossed the Potomac tired and hungry, but with no regrets. |
Year Range from |
1894 |
Creator |
Parham, John Thomas |
Year Range to |
1894 |
Subjects |
Address ( Oration ) African Americans Afro-Americans Ambulances Amusements Ankle Apple butter Apples Artillery (Weaponry) Ashes Attack Battle Battlefields Beards Beef Bivouac Blankets Blood Brains Bread Breastworks Bridges Brigade Brothers Bullet holes Bullet wound Bullets Cakes Camp Canteens (Beverage containers) Captain Catnap Cavities Civil War Civil war battles Clothes Coats Coffee Color bearer Color guards Color Sergeant Colored (Negroes) Column, [military] Commissary Comrades Confederate soldiers Confederate veterans Cooks Corn Corporals Corpses Cotton Counties Courier Cowardice Creeks Cut (wound) Daybreak Dead animals Dead persons Debris Depots Deputy Collector of Customs Details Devil Disabled persons Ditch Division Doors & doorways Drills, Military Duty Editors Engagement Expeditions & surveys Farm houses Fences Field Flagpoles Flags Flank Foraging Fords (Stream crossings) Freight trains Gaps Gentlemen Hamlet Hand Hard tack Haversack Head Heroes Hickory Highways Homes Horse Hospitals, Field Inhabitants Jackets Knee Knife Knolls Laughter Letters Lieutenant Limbs Long roll (military drum beat) Luggage Maple sugar cake March, Military Meals Member Milk Minie ball Missions Mountains Munitions Neck Nudes Officers, Military Oil cloth Orchards Pants Peaches Picket duty Picket line Pickets (Guards) Porches Pork Prisoners Prisoners of war Private, military rank Ragged Rebels Railroad bridges Ranks, military Rations Rattlesnakes Regiments Reserve Retreats, Military Ridges Rifles Roads Roasting ears Rock formations Rocks Salt Scouts, Military Servants Sharpshooting Shells (Ammunition) Shoat Shot Side street Side walks Sketch Skirmish Skirmishers Sleeve (clothing) Sling Soil Sorrel Stone walls Stream fords Streams Sunsets Supper Supplies Surgeons Sympathizers Territory Tin cups Towns and communities Trains Trot Turnpike roads Underclothes Uniforms Villages Wagons Water Wells Windows Woods |
Search Terms |
10th Georgia Infantry 12th Virginia Infantry 15th Virginia Infantry 16th Virginia Infantry 2nd Manassas 32nd Virginia Infantry 41st Virginia Infantry 6th Virginia Infantry A. P. Hill Camp of Confederate Veterans Austrian rifle Barksdale's Brigade Boteler's Crossing Bottom' s Bridge Brownsville, Maryland Bull Run River Burkittsville, Maryland Central Railroad Chaffin's Farm Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad Chickahominy River Cholera Morbus Civil War Cobb's Legion Confederacy, the Confederate Confederate Army Confederate Veterans Crampton's Gap, Maryland Culpeper County, Virginia Deputy Sergeant of the City of Petersburg Fauquier County, Virginia Federal Fifteenth Virginia Infantry Forty-first Virginia Infantry Frederick City Hanover Junction Harper's Ferry, West Virginia James River Leesburg, Virginia Loudon Avenue, NW Louisa County, Virginia Mahone's Brigade Malvern Hill Manassas, Virginia Maryland Maryland Campaign McClellan's Army McLaw's Brigade McLaw's Division Monocacy Junction Northern Virginia Orange County, Virginia Petersburg City Council Petersburg Riflemen Petersburg, Virginia Pleasant Valley Potomac River Prince George County, Virginia Richmond, Virginia Second Battle of Manassas [Bull Run] Semmes' Brigade Sharpsburg, Maryland Shepherdstown, West Virginia (then Virginia) Shumaker's Battery Sixteenth Virginia Infantry Sixth Virginia Infantry South Mountain Tenth Georgia Infantry Thirty-Second Virginia Infantry Twelfth Virginia Infantry Union Army Virginians War Between the States War Talks of Confederate Veterans Warrenton Springs, Virginia Zouaves |
People |
Barksdale, [William A.] Bernard, Geo. S. Bernard, George S. Boteler, [unknown] Cobb, Howell Coke, Octavious Early, Jubal Anderson Forrest, Robert Henly, Richard Leonard Jackson, Thomas Jonathan Mahone, William McClelland, George B. McLaws, Lafayette Montague, Edgar Burwell Parham, John Thomas Parham, William Allen Parham, William H. Semmes, Paul Jones Shumaker, L. M. Spraggins, Richard M. St. Clair, Henry Tayleure, William W. Taylor, Leonard |
Event |
Civil War |
Collection |
George S. Bernard Collection |
Imagefile |
023\200975037.JPG |
Number of images |
37 |
Object Name |
Letter |
Object ID |
2009.75.037 |
Extent of Description |
37 pages, size 9" x 12" |