January 11, 1863. Camp Utley, [Racine] Wisconsin. Came off guard in the morning. Got ready for inspection but for some reason or other we did not have any. Lt. [George R.] Peck went to church with a squad & being seriously impressed and feeling it is a duty to tend church (being on guard the night before), I did so but carelessly fell asleep during the prayer. But [I] fortunately slept unobserved until the enthusiasm of the minister (he was a Methodist) aroused me from my sweet repose and reminded me that I was losing the best of the sermon. Returning home from church, I laid down and took a nap, arousing just in time for dress parade.
January 12th [1863]. Went on battalion drill in the forenoon. It is a very fine day — thawing and arm all day. The report was current that our company was to be divided to fill up two other companies. The men are very much opposed to going and declare that before they will, they will desert. Attended a negro concert at Titus Hall (Racine) in the evening.
Capt. Edwin Augustus Bottum
January 13th [1863]. Nothing of much importance transpires. It is decided to allow our captain [Edwin Augustus Bottum] to fill his company by volunteers and transfer from those companies which have more than their maximum number. We had drill and so forth as usual.
January 14th [1863]. Nothing of note occurs today.
January 15th [1863]. Received and answered letters from home. Capt. [Edwin] Bottum is very anxious about his commission.
January 16th [1863]. Nothing occurs during the day. The Capt. came in just after dusk and announced to the men that the captains of the larger companies had consented to give him the privilege of filling his by transferring those that wished to volunteer and he had agreed to resign if he could not volunteer enough men by noon the next day. As soon as the company heard of this (it being about 9 o’clock in the evening), they set to work getting volunteers. The succeeded in getting about twenty before bedtime.
January 17th [1863]. The volunteering goes on lively and today as just 12 noon, the company is full to the minimum number (although some of the captains did not do as they agreed in transferring those that volunteered — Captain Chase was one of the number). The company being full, we proceeded to organize the company and elect the noncommissioned officers (the sergeants being elected and corporals appointed by the captain). Orderly Sergeant, Samuel C. McClure, Second Sergeant, Edward Gray. [I] was appointed corporal.
January 18th [1863]. The transfer of those who volunteered takes place and Capt. Bottum’s company is full. Nothing of any particular importance occurs today.
January 19th [1863]. Camp rumors are afloat and the old colonel [Isaac E. Messmore] is somewhat agitated. It is reported that he is in danger of losing his commission. Some things go to show that our regiment will be retained in the state and some have the opinion that our regiment will go to Minnesota in the spring to fight Indians. Various exciting camp rumors are afloat.
January 20th [1863]. Lt. Byron Hewitt of the Eighth Wisconsin passed through here on his way home after being paroled by the rebs. I’ve had no company drill in the forenoon but a fine battalion drill in the afternoon. I’ve marched up town through the principal streets and then came back and dismissed for the day.
January 21st [1863]. A Sgt. [Theophilus Gabriel] Brunson of Co. D was detained by the colonel to act as 2d Lt. of our company. Nothing worthy of note transpires during the day. Drill and the duties of camp life take place as usual.
January 22nd [1863]. Instead of company drill this morning, we took a short march of about a mile and a half south towards Kenosha and returned with a good appetite for our dinner which was dispatched in short order. A sergeant’s examination was held in the evening. The colonel made some alternation in the sergeants elected in our company. They are now as follows: [Henry C.] Minier, [Orlando T.] Carpenter, [Samuel C.] McClure, [Leonard A.] Bonney, and [William T.] Bottum.
January 23rd [1863]. Nothing of any importance takes place today.
January 24th [1863]. It rained hard all night and the ground is very muddy. There will be no drill on that account.
January 25th [1863]. There is inspection of knapsacks this morning. It bids fair to be a beautiful day. I went to church today and after listening to the word of God delivered by a very able Methodist preacher, I returned probably better in mind and body than when I went. I attended church again in the evening but did not happen to be in attentive mood, so myself and Sgt. Bottum skedaddled during the discourse delivered by Elder Brunson entirely satisfied with what we heard. We paid a short visit to the Episcopal Church and then made tracks for camp where we enjoyed a comfortable night’s sleep. Some of the boys of our company came in drunk.
January 26th [1863]. Nothing of any importance transpires or anything is trisected but our regular drill and other duties. Time goes swiftly by and the month of January is pretty near gone and we know nothing more of our destination than we did when we first enlisted.
January 27th [1863]. I’ve had a good long company drill this morning. There is some exciting news from the seat of war. The weather is very fine today.
January 28th [1863]. Nothing of importance occurrs today. I’ve performed our regular routine of duties and eat our regular grub with nothing to change or molest our peaceful warfare of knives and forks.
January 29th [1863]. Nothing worthy of any note occurs today.
January 30th [1863]. The weather is very pleasant today and looks more like spring than any for some time. The winter has seemed to favor us as there has been but very little snow or tedious weather.
January 31st [1863]. Nothing of importance happened or to excite a soldier’s fancy. I received letters from home. My throat is a little sore having caught a slight cold. I’ve not received any money but our twenty-five dollar bounty (advance bounty).
The Methodist Chapel in Racine (1863)
February 1st [1863]. Sabbath morning. The weather opens this morning intensely cold and blustering. The captain went to church with a squad. I thought I could make myself more useful in staying in my quarters and answering letters than going to church so I acted according to my feeling and stayed at home despite all the thoughts of the good looking young lady who sings with the choir in the Methodist Chapel and wears a small black hat with a feather.
February 2nd [1863]. The weather is still quite cold. No drill or dress parade or anything else, and in fact it was about all we wanted to do to get wood and keep fire.
February 3rd [1863]. The weather has not moderated much. I heard from home. Robert M. Thomas and Aurelius P. Zander arrived from home [Batavia]. They report the secession sentiment pretty warm among the Copperheads. They do not care for anything but the old party league with the South and do not respect principle nor government.
February 4th [1863]. A light snow fell last night and pretty damp. The colonel went to Madison to see about our pay.
February 5th [1863]. The snow is still on the ground. Nothing of importance transpires.
February 6th [1863]. I attended church (Methodist) in the evening. Elder Brunson preached as also did the minister of the city of Racine. Nothing of note is transacted. Pay day is looked forward to with a great deal of anxiety and everyone is about strapped.
[The minister of the First Methodist Church in Racine at this time was Rev. James C. Robbins (1822-1890). He served from October 1862 to October 1863. He served in the North Indiana Conference in 1855 and then transferred to Wisconsin. In 1887 he moved to Los Angeles, California, and became dangerously insane, being confined to a hospital for two years just before his death the year after he was released.]
Rev. James C. Robbins, pastor of Racine Methodist Church
February 7th [1863]. Time still has his ruthless sway and I can hardly find enough to make any sort of variety in my journal. Col. Messmore arrives from Madison with no news about pay day but has a “Commish” for Lt. (then Sgt.) [Theophilus Gabriel] Brunson who has been acting as Lt. of our company.
February 8th [1863]. Today is the Sabbath. We first have inspection of arms and accoutrements, etc., etc. Took a short march with knapsacks which gave us quite a good appetite. We did not have any squad go to church today. We hear to our joy that the paymaster is to be here this weekend and pay us off.
February 9th [1863]. It rained last night quite hard. No drill on account of the mud. There is a camp rumor afloat to the effect that we are going away Friday. Lt. Brunson left for Milwaukee today for the purpose of being mustered in. Things seem to indicate that we are going to be paid off shortly.
February 10th [1863]. Lt. Brunson got back from Milwaukee. Lt. [George R.] Peck started after Joseph Riford and George [A.] Smith who are supposed to have deserted. Lt. Brunson put on his shoulder straps for the first time. Edward N. Bacon who has been absent from the company for some time returned today. Capt. Bottum is down with the rheumatism.
February 11th [1863]. Time flies away so fast that we do hardly perceive. Answered a letter from home which was very welcomely received. I also received a box from home that was very welcome. I went up town in the evening.
Racine, Wisconsin as it appeared in 1860
February 12th [1863]. Capt. Bottum became worse and went to the hospital. Lt. Peck returned. I changed my bunk from the orderlies’ room to the sergeants’ room moving into it. Pa went on guard as sergeant of the guard for the first time.
February 13th [1863]. I received letters from home and elsewhere. Also answered them. We (the battalion) went up town and made quite a display.
February 14th [1863]. I am on guard today. The ground is quite muddy and the camp (being quite flat) is almost inundated with water.
February 15th [1863]. I just came off guard and slept most all the forenoon. There was inspection of quarters today. IN the evening, Lt. [George] Peck went to church with a squad.
Gov. Edward Salomon
Monday, February 16th [1863]. We had battalion drill for about an hour and a half in the forenoon. Gov. [Edward] Salomon arrived in the afternoon. We had review and an address by the governor. He told us that we are going to get our pay soon and leave the state, both of which we were glad to hear.
February 17th [1863]. Tuesday opens with a very fine spring morning and the weather continues very fine all day. We had battalion drill in the forenoon [and] also in the afternoon, which was quite a pleasant one. The colonel made us charge through the timber on the double quick which we did and had there been any enemy in the neighborhood, we might have been taken prisoners as well as not, but fortunately we did not have any armed enemies in the woods so there was no damage.
February 18th [1863]. The weather as well as the state of feeling among the boys is not very pleasant. It’s being reported that marching orders are countermanded and that in all probability we would go to Madison. Answered letters from home. It’s a very dull day. No news or anything else of interest. Henry [A.] Bailey was confined in the guardhouse for employing a lawyer to get him out of the army. Yesterday after drill he got a pass (being notified by his attorney at Milwaukee by telegraph that he would be at Racine that evening to arrest him). He went up town with Sgt. [Leonard] Bonney (who also had a pass). After they had got up town, Bonney saw him conversing with lawyer Thomson of Milwaukee and “smelt a rat.” He immediately returned to camp and reported it to the colonel who sent a posse of men to arrest Bailey and his attorney, which they did. Lawyer Thomson was confined for a day or two and then released. Bailey was confined in the guard house with a ball and chain.
February 19th [1863]. The weather continues very bad. It is rumored that men have gone [and] are buying horses; it is calculated for our regiment to be mounted infantry. It is also reported that the colonel had had a dispatch to the effect that we are to be paid off the coming Saturday. But these are merely reports which cannot be relied on only as camp rumor which may be true or not, just as it happens, and might have been started inside camp.
February 20th [1863]. The ground is covered with snow this morning but it is a clear bright morning and bids fair to be a pretty day. The paymaster arrived in camp this afternoon and told us on dress parade that he had thirty-five thousand dollars in greenbacks and the rest in Eastern money and left it to the boys which they would rather do — take the Eastern money or wait until the Treasure Notes could be got. They all voted to take it!
February 21st [1863]. Morning dawned bright and cold. The wind being quite warm, there was no battalion drill. We do not know where we are destined to go yet.
Sunday morning, February 22nd [1863]. None of the regiment was paid on Saturday. I did not go to church today. The weather is quite pleasant.
Monday, February 23rd [1863]. This morning opens fair. The captains were paid the money for the men. Several companies were paid off this forenoon. In the afternoon, battalion went up town. After forming in close column, the colonel — as did Major [Rufus] Cheney (the paymaster) — made us a short address. They were both loudly cheered after which we returned to camp. When we got there, the colonel told us that he had to be absent from the regiment to attend the funeral of his father and asks it as a favor of the boys to be orderly while he was gone and not make bad the good reputation they had gained from the citizens of Racine. When they all answered in one voice in the affirmative.
February 24th [1863]. Capt. Bottum paid us off today commencing in the forenoon. In the afternoon, Lt. Peck took a squad of men to the express office to send their money home. Quite a large amount of money was sent home.
February 25th [1863]. There is no drill today. The boys are somewhat excited by the colonel saying that on the following Sunday we were to start for Cairo. The weather is quite bad.
February 26th [1863]. Nothing but excitement at our prospect of going away starting Sunday. There is no drill. Nothing of note occurred.
February 27th [1863]. Nothing is going on today but preparations for moving. The quartermaster is packing up their things. The companies were inspected and damaged guns were returned. We were also mustered in. Double guard was put around the camp to keep the men from deserting.
[See letter dated 27 February 1863, Samuel C. McClure to wife]
February 28th [1863]. The quartermaster is sending away his goods & nothing of any particular importance transpires.
“The ladies showed us that their best wishes was with us by waving their handkerchiefs and making other loyal demonstrations.” — John A. McClure
Sunday, March 1st [1863]. I came off from guard. Double guard was kept all night and in the early morning early we were ordered to pack knapsacks and be ready to fall in at a moment’s notice. About ten o’clock we fell in and marched up to the depot. As we passed through town the ladies showed us that their best wishes was with us by waving their handkerchiefs and making other loyal demonstrations. After going aboard the cars, we soon found ourselves flying over the Racine and Freeport Railroad, halting at the several stations on the road. Starting from Racine about 2 PM, arrived at Freeport about 6 in the afternoon. The cars did not halt for the night.
March 2 [1863]. After traveling all night, we awoke this morning finding ourselves at Bloomington, Illinois. The next station we stopped at was Assumption. While halting there, a man from our regiment was ran over by a train going southward. His leg was broke in a frightful manner. The country through which the Illinois Central [Railroad] passes is flat and swampy after leaving Assumption. We moved on without interruption until we arrived at Centralia where we halted for water. It was dark when we started from Centralia.
March 3rd [1863]. Arrived at Cairo this morning about three o’clock AM and stayed in the cars until about eleven AM. We formed on the parade grounds of the 32nd where we drew our rations and got dinner. After three PM, we got aboard the steamer Mineohaha bound for Columbus, Kentucky. We passed on our way the battleground of Belmont [Missouri] arriving at Columbus about dark and stayed on board the boat until about 8 o’clock when we went ashore and climbed the hill to Fort Halleck where we passed the night with our knapsacks for our pillow and our blanket for our coverlet.
March 4th [1863]. We got up this morning with the solemn expectation that we were to leave today but in that we were happily disappointed. We received and pitched our tents. It is rumored that Fort Donelson is taken but needs confirmation. We have to make a _____ detail today — the first of the kind from our regiment.
March 5th [1863]. Wrote letters home. We had no drill nor dress parade and I took a stroll through town. Spies have been suspected of being in camp. One has been arrested on board a boat and imprisoned. The artillery on the fort practiced a little this afternoon, firing a few shot and shell into the river. Col. Amarchy [?] of the Wisconsin Militia had command of the guns.
March 6th [1863]. Received a letter from home. The ground is quite muddy in consequence of its raining most all day. The weather is rather uncomfortable — somewhat cold for the sunny South. I took a ramble in the afternoon and looked over the remains of the once large camp occupied by the rebels. It is a scene of desolation and destruction. A large force must have been quartered here some time before the fall of Columbus. Some fear is apprehended that the rebels will attack.
March 7th [1863]. It rained all night and the ground is quite muddy. The clouds appeared about noon. On dress parade the Minnesota rather took the socks off from us in going through the manual of arms. We received nine rounds of cartridges this evening.
March 8th [1863]. The weather is quite damp and the ground muddy. Today is Sunday. We were to have inspection today but could not on account of the weather. So I stayed inside my tent and wrote letters. Everything is quiet here today.
March 9th [1863]. The weather looks as though there was going to be a change. The sun rises clear and calm but it is pretty cold for the sunny South. I was detailed for picket this morning for the first time. I had to be up all night, or most of it.
March 10th [1863]. I came off from picket about nine o’clock. We had the first company drill this forenoon we have had since [leaving] Racine. The Lt. Col. drilled the battalion in the afternoon.
March 29th [1863]. Those regiments (excepting the 25th Wisconsin) which left here some time ago on an expedition up the river have taken up their tents and left for good. The weather is variated, being quite cold this morning. Today is the Sabbath. We have company inspection. the boys are busy raising their tents off from the ground.
March 30th [1863]. Nothing worthy of note transpires today.
Adj. Gen. Lorenzo Thomas
March 31st [1863]. The several regiments at this post were to pass in review in the presence of Adj. Gen. [Lorenzo] Thomas of the U.S. Army direct from Washington. I am post guard today. Received a letter from [brother] James. He is opposite the mouth of the Yazoo River in Arkansas.
April 1st [1863]. I came off guard (this is all fools day). Several individuals of the 31st Regiment arrived from Madison. The regiment’s camping ground was somewhat changed today — the right wing being changed over to the side where the left wing rested and the left wing “visa versa.” The colonel makes the men all work — officers and all. The colonel has made several important changes since he came here.
April 2nd [1863]. The tents are moved this morning. the orders are to fall out at half past twelve with boots blacked and clothes dusted. Half past twelve comes and we fell out as did the other regiments, marched down to await the coming of Adj. Gen. Thomas. As the boat (on which he was to arrive) came in sight, a salute was fired in honor of his rank. When he arrived at the landing with his escort, Brig. Gen. [Alexander] Asboth met him and escorted him to the piazza where the brigade passed in review. Gen. Thomas then announced to the soldiers the policy of the government after which we returned to camp.
Brig. Gen. Alexander Asboth
April 3rd [1863]. Last night we retired to rest as usual. About four o’clock this morning we were awoke by the long roll beating in consequence of an attack on Hickman by some rebel guerrillas which was about the country. Our regiment as well as others are under marching orders & part of the 27th Regiment has already gone in pursuit of the rebels.
April 4th [1863]. Our regiment is mostly detailed for guard this morning.
April 5th [1863]. Morning opens fair and without any disturbance. Every show of any attack on this place is vanished and the excitement has mostly subsided and the rebels have skedaddled without leaving any trace of where they have gone. Most probably they have dispersed in the cane brakes to rally some other time more convenient for Jayhawking.
April 6th [1863]. Today I’m on guard. Today the weather is quite pleasant. Nothing of importance occurs today except the regular duties of camp. Nothing transpires to break the monotony of camp life.
April 7th [1863]. Gen. [William] Rosecrans called for more reinforcements. It seems to be the opinion that we stand a chance of that trip. We are expecting to be paid off in a few days.
April 8th [1863]. The paymaster arrived in camp this afternoon and paid off the 34th Wisconsin (drafted regiment) and eight companies of our regiment. Night coming on and stopping the further payment until morning.
Lt. George Record Peck
April 9th [1863]. This morning the remaining companies were paid off. Some are of the opinion that now we are paid, we will have to leave soon although present indications denote otherwise. The colonel has (or directed) the making of a brick oven to bake bread. He has also sent for his wife and so has Sgt. Mason.
[See Letter of 9 April 1863, Samuel Clark McClure to his wife.]
April 10th [1863]. The effects of payday are plain to be seen in the visages and steps of some of the men showing that they are a little the worse for liquor. The air is quite sultry. The dust is quite plenty and makes things look as [if] it could not help it.
Saturday, April 11th [1863]. Nothing of importance occurred. Corporal [Aurelius P.] Zander is trying to get up a petition to get Lt. [George] Peck out but it will not work. He is so ardent for promotion that he tries to get himself promoted by getting others out.
When Duty Calls -- The McClure Family Civil War Diaries & Letters 
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