The Burning of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania Part 1

The Burning of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.

by B. S. (Benjamin Shroder) Schneck.

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

The first edition of this work having been exhausted in a single month, my worthy and enterprising publishers have encouraged the preparation of a second without delay.

It is hardly necessary to say, that the first edition was prepared under exceedingly unfavorable circ.u.mstances. Mind and body were in a state of exhaustion. For a month, and longer, the hours of each day were so much taken up with new and exciting cares and duties, as to unfit one in great measure for either mental or physical effort. Hence the unpretending little book was ushered into existence with a felt sense of its deficiencies.

An honest effort at improvement has been made in the present edition. No small portion of redundant matter has been left out, thus affording room for various statements which were not at hand before. I may here direct special attention to the masterly "Vindication of the Border" by Mr.

Apple, the spirited contribution from the facile pen of Mr. Bausman, and the excellent article by Mr. Shryock. I have with forethought chosen to introduce other witnesses, besides myself, to testify in regard to the matter in hand, rather than to have the public rely upon my testimony only.

The list of names, with the amount of losses by those who owned houses, were to have been omitted in this edition; but so numerous were the protests from valued friends against such a course, that it has been allowed to remain. The s.p.a.ce occupied by these details has, however, been reduced nearly one half, partly by employing smaller type, and partly by condensing the matter.

The engraving prefixed to the present edition, representing the burnt portion of the town, will, it is hoped, be acceptable to the reader. A steel plate engraving of the ruins of the town would have been given, if any satisfactory representation in so small a compa.s.s could have been furnished. But the judgment of the artist decided against its feasibility, and in favor of that herewith presented.[1]

B. S. S.

CHAMBERSBURG, Oct. 31st, 1864.

THE BURNING OF CHAMBERSBURG.

LETTER I.

MY DEAR FRIEND:

Your request to give you a succinct and, as far as may be, detailed account of the terrible calamity with which our town was visited on the 30th day of July, is received. You are pleased to say, that not only my long residence in the place, but the fact that I had, as on former occasions, so also during the present one, remained at home, gives me a right to speak on the subject, without fear of cavil or sneer from those who are ready, either from ignorance or something worse, to misrepresent the facts in the case, or apply the ill-timed weapons of ridicule and sarcasm against statements which have appeared in print.[2] Pa.s.sing by your other remarks, which I may be permitted to set down as emanating from personal partiality, I shall proceed to give you, as perfectly as I can, and as briefly as the subject will allow, a somewhat detailed account of the terrible disaster, with an honest endeavor to avoid all special pleading and overdrawn statements, dealing only in simple matters of fact, as far as I have been able to gather them, either from personal knowledge or unquestionable authority.

The Military Situation on the Border.

Before proceeding directly to the narration of the terrible catastrophe, it may be well to glance at the military situation on our border. This seems the more necessary from the fact, that a very large portion of the public prints have been misled into the belief, and consequently have unwittingly led their readers to believe that, "if the citizens of Chambersburg had turned out to resist the enemy, the burning and pillage of the town could have been averted," inasmuch as the rebel force, according to some statements, was very trifling, "scarcely numbering two hundred men." You, my dear friend, are laboring under this erroneous belief yourself. Allow me, therefore, to turn your attention to the following facts, which are well established, and which can be corroborated by any amount of evidence.

General Couch, the commander of this military division, had under his control a company of about one hundred men at Mercersburg, sixteen miles southwest from here, and a section of a battery of artillery in this place. This was the entire military force in the c.u.mberland Valley, under the control of our military commander, at the time. Several Pennsylvania regiments which had previously been organized for the defence of the border, through the efforts of our vigilant Governor, had been summoned by the General Government to Washington and the Potomac Army. One hundred men and two small cannon--that was all.

But you ask: "Was not General Averill near enough to have prevented the rebels from executing their nefarious design upon your town? and, if so, why did not General Couch inform him of the situation of affairs, and urge him forward?" The answer is at hand. General Couch _did_ attempt to inform General Averill in time of the fact that the enemy, with a force about three thousand strong, had crossed the Potomac west of Williamsport, and was moving by way of Mercersburg and St. Thomas directly on Chambersburg.

Averill was encamped one mile from Greencastle (ten from Chambersburg) on Friday night, July 29. The first two messengers with despatches from General Couch, could not find him. The third messenger succeeded accidentally in finding him after midnight in a field. Averill only now discovered that he had been flanked by the enemy, and expressed himself greatly surprised and chagrined to the messenger at this state of things.

Whether he was to blame, it is not for me to say. It is sufficient for my purpose just now to know that, beyond two small cannon and one hundred men, we were _without any military protection_. And could the few hundred citizens of the place, most of them without firearms, be expected to make a resistance against such a force, and with six cannon planted on the hills overlooking the town? To ask the question is to answer it.

In reading over the two preceding paragraphs it occurred to me that the impression might have been made on your mind, that I wished to find fault with the General Government for removing from us all military protection on our border. I have no wish to do so in this letter. I am no military man, and hence am not so positive in my opinions as many other men, who are doubtless far more capable of forming a judgment in such matters. I merely mention the simple facts as they are patent to all who had the best opportunities of knowing the true state of things. So, too, in regard to both the Generals named. There is, since the burning of our town, a very strong feeling of disapprobation in our community and elsewhere against both, especially against General Couch. I cannot as yet share this feeling. I know how apt we are, especially when smarting under severe personal losses or grievances, to look around for some object upon which, or some person on whom, to lay the blame. For my part, I would rather err on the side of charity than on the side of unjust fault-finding and denunciation. I prefer, until better advised, to endorse the views of my friend Colonel A. K. McClure, himself one of the sufferers, and well posted in such matters. He says:

"General Averill possibly might have saved Chambersburg, and I know that General Couch exhausted himself to get Averill to fall back from Greencastle to this point. I do not say that General Averill is to blame, for he was under orders from General Hunter, and not subject to General Couch. He had a large force of the enemy in his front, and until it is clearly proved to the contrary, I must believe that he did his whole duty."

These two sentences are guardedly worded. "General Averill _possibly_ might have saved Chambersburg." The enemy, under McCausland, Bradley Johnson, and Gilmore, let it be recollected, had at least three thousand cavalry, with artillery at command, eight hundred of the latter being in town, the rest within supporting distance. Johnson's command occupied the high eminence one mile west of the town with a battery. No better position could have been desired. They were flushed at the prospect of plunder and pillage; their horses were fresh and sleek; their men resolute and defiant. On the other hand, Averill and his men had been worn out and jaded by long and heavy marches in Western Virginia for a number of consecutive weeks. Their horses were run down, and many of them ready to die, so that two hundred and fifty of these last could not be taken any farther, but were left here to recruit. It is therefore only _possible_, scarcely probable, that, even if Averill's force of less than two thousand five hundred men had been here, a successful resistance could have been made under these circ.u.mstances. But Averill and his men were not here until several hours after the work of destruction was accomplished, and the enemy, gloating over his vengeful deeds, was miles away on the Western Turnpike, towards McConnellsburg.

Judge then, dear sir, how keenly we must feel the unjust reproaches heaped upon us by professed friends, after our houses are in ruins, our goods despoiled, and our hearts saddened at every step we take in beholding continuous squares of desolation in our once beautiful town. And reproaches _for what_? Because a picket guard of one hundred soldiers and a small number of citizens did not successfully resist more than three thousand[3] veteran cavalrymen, with cannon eligibly planted to lay waste the town without even coming into it. That commanding position once gained by the enemy, and the town was at his mercy, no matter what force of cavalry or infantry might have been in Chambersburg.

Reproaches--and from _whom_ and _whence_? From certain newspaper editors of New York; that same New York, which, with its population of half a million, could not quell its rabble mob last year, without having a part of the Potomac Army brought thither to guard some of the very newspaper offices from which those reproaches upon a helpless town in a neighboring State are now so unjustly heaped; those identical newspapers which have ever and anon sent forth paragraphs of bitter invective against Pennsylvania in general, and Chambersburg in particular, for the "ill treatment of the New York militia" at the hands of our citizens.[4] New York is a great State, and counts its n.o.ble and good men by hundreds of thousands; but like every large State with large towns and cities, she also counts her thousands of depraved creatures in human shape. And I speak from personal knowledge, for they were quartered for weeks near my late residence, when I say that of all the soldiers who were in this community since the commencement of this war, none have left behind them such a bad moral odor as have many of these men. Drunkenness, wanton destruction of property, thieving, fighting and stabbing each other, (in some cases to death outright,) were frequent occurrences. And yet such men are not only allowed to vilify and abuse the people whom their misconduct has outraged, but certain New York sheets take up their cause and pour forth wormwood and gall upon the town, the community, and the State. Let a virtuous public p.r.o.nounce its verdict.

Let me ill.u.s.trate what kind of "defenders" these two regiments of New York militia were. On their arrival in the town, and whilst marching through it on their way to camp, about one mile south from here, some of the men received the hearty cheers of our citizens with sneering remarks about the necessity of coming "all the way from New York to protect Pennsylvania!"

Just as if the protection of the border was not at the same time a protection of other States--perhaps, in certain contingencies, even of New York. But mark the sequel. They went to camp the same day of their arrival, with liberal supplies of everything. The border was known to be imperiled a second time, and a large portion of our citizens were armed and marched out with these regiments. During the night our scouts brought information to camp that the rebels were moving from the Potomac this way.

And now a scene of confusion ensued which beggars description. In the greatest conceivable consternation, these "defenders" made for Chambersburg in "double-quick," and took seats in the cars, "homeward bound." Two interesting little circ.u.mstances, in connection with this _allegro_ movement, must be added, of which hundreds of our citizens were eye-witnesses. The first is, that these "defenders," in their hasty retreat, did not forget to provide for themselves as _safe_ a retreat as possible. To this end they ordered our citizen soldiers to keep in the rear--in military phrase, "to cover their retreat" until the militia-men had reached the cars in safety! The other little circ.u.mstance is, that in their hasty retreat, they left the whole of their camp equipage behind. At daylight the following morning you might have seen a score of wagons from the town returning with loads of tents, boxes, trunks, packages, and all sorts of military fixtures, and conveying them to the cars, in which they were sent as far as Shippensburg, by military orders. As the militia thought proper to hasten on farther to the north instead of protecting their own property, the wary rebels took unmolested possession of the whole of it on the same day!

I think you will agree with me in the remark that these men had not much capital to boast of in the way of bravery, although Pennsylvanians should not perhaps complain, when these "defenders" did no worse for _us_ than they did for _themselves_, namely, beat a hasty retreat, and leave all their valuables to the enemy, even before they had a sight of him.

I would not have troubled you with this unpleasant chapter, if it were not necessary, in order to understand the animus of the splenetic course of the papers referred to. These editors, under the pretext of "defending the citizens of New York," have most unaccountably, unjustly, and without the shadow of provocation, except it be the desolation and ruin of hundreds of homes and hearths, a.s.sailed and sneered at a deeply afflicted community, which has poured out of its former means to the soldiers of our armies at home and abroad without stint and with cheerful alacrity, and by night and by day watched and ministered at the sick and dying beds of our soldiers without distinction of nation or State.

Yours, &c.

LETTER II.

MY DEAR FRIEND:

You are aware that the late incursion of the enemy was not the first visit we had from our Southern "friends." In the fall of 1862 we had Stuart's cavalry raid, and in 1863 the invasion by Lee's army. Since the first of July of the present year, up to the time of McCausland's advent, the entire community, especially the farmers, were kept in constant uneasiness. Twice before had they been robbed of horses, wagons, and grain. The wheat harvest had just commenced, and now the enemy was again on the border. During the first three weeks of July, the farmers felt it necessary to remove their most valuable personal property. Merchants packed up and sent away, at least a portion of their goods, eastward. But in each case the rebels did _not_ come, and some degree of apathy in the community was the result. But this did not last long. On the morning of July 29th, unmistakable evidence of the crossing of squads of rebel cavalry over the Potomac, reached us. The citizens of Chambersburg, with very few exceptions, remained. Indeed, early in the evening we were a.s.sured that a considerable force of our troops were on their way from Harrisburg, which, however, like many previous a.s.surances, telegrams, and rumors, was not realized. Our scouts soon reported the near approach of the rebels, and by three o'clock on the morning of Sat.u.r.day, the 30th, the citizens who had gone out with their arms and a section of the battery, having satisfied themselves of the overpowering strength of the enemy, fell back to town. Three sh.e.l.ls were now thrown over the town by the rebels from the hills beyond, and as these did not elicit any reply, eight hundred and thirty-one of their number came to town, their skirmishers simultaneously investing every street and alley, gradually moving forward, and then halting until the signal or forward command was again given. We were once more in subjection to rebel rule. The centre of the town was filled with them. They called together several of the citizens who were on the street, requesting them to collect some of the prominent inhabitants, with a view to entering into negotiations. To this end the Court-House bell was rung. The summons to the citizens was very partially obeyed. It was felt that nothing could be done by negotiation, and that they must submit to pillage--the most they antic.i.p.ated. The few who did come together were approached by Captain Fitzhugh, one of McCausland's staff, who produced and read a written order, signed by General Jubal Early, directing the command to proceed to Chambersburg, demand a tribute of $100,000 in gold, or $500,000 in Northern currency, and, on the failure to secure this sum, to proceed to burn the town, in retaliation for the burning of six or eight houses specified as having been burned in certain counties in Virginia by General Hunter. The citizens stated that it was utterly impossible to pay the sum named either in gold or currency, and that the demand could not be made in good faith. They further remonstrated against the monstrosity of burning a whole town of six thousand inhabitants, in retaliation for the six or eight houses named. So utterly incredulous were they as to the threat being actually carried out, that they expressed their incredulity without reserve. Captain Fitzhugh replied with a clinching oath, that these orders would be carried out very quickly. He immediately issued his orders to his men, a barrel of kerosene and matches were secured, and in less than twenty minutes the town was fired in a dozen places, and they continued the incendiary work for about one hour. I may here say, that most of the store-goods had been removed, and a few prominent citizens had left, but that no families, women, or children had departed. The burning was executed in a most ruthless and unrelenting manner.[5]

"A squad of men would approach a house, break open the door, and kindle a fire, with no other notice to the inmates, except to get out of it as soon as they could. In many cases, five, ten, fifteen minutes were asked to secure some clothing, which _were refused_. Many families escaped with only the clothing they had on, and such as they could gather up in their haste. In many cases they were _not allowed to take these_, but were threatened with instant death if they did not cast them away and flee.

Sick and aged people had to be carried to the fields. The corpse of at least one person who had recently died, was hastily interred in the garden, and children, separated from their parents, ran wildly screaming through the streets. Those whose stupor or eagerness to save something, detained them, emerged with difficulty from the streets filled with the sheeted flames of their burning homes. I should say here, that no provocation had been given; not a shot was fired on them in entering the town, and not until the full crisis was reached, did desperation, in a few instances, lead to desperate acts.

"As to the result, I may say that the entire heart or body of the town is burned. Not a house or building of any kind is left on a s.p.a.ce of about an average of two squares of streets, extending each way from the centre, with some four or five exceptions, where the buildings were isolated. Only the outskirts are left. The Court-house, Bank, Town Hall, German Reformed Printing Establishment, every store and hotel in the town, and every mill and factory in the s.p.a.ce indicated, and two churches, were burnt. Between three and four hundred dwellings were burned, leaving at least twenty-five hundred persons without a home or a hearth. In value, three-fourths of the town was destroyed. The scene of desolation must be seen to be appreciated. Crumbling walls, stacks of chimneys, and smoking embers, are all that remain of once elegant and happy homes.

"As to the scene itself, it beggars description. My own residence being in the outskirts, and feeling it the call of duty to be with my family, I could only look on from without. The day was sultry and calm, not a breath stirring, and each column of smoke rose black, straight, and single; first one, and then another, and another, and another, until the columns blended and commingled; and then one vast and lurid column of smoke and flame rose perpendicularly to the sky, and spread out into a vast crown, like a cloud of sackcloth hanging over the doomed city; whilst the roar and the surging, the crackling and crash of falling timbers and walls, broke upon the still air with a fearful dissonance, and the screams and sounds of agony of burning animals, hogs, and cows, and horses, made the welkin horrid with sounds of woe. It was a scene to be witnessed and heard once in a lifetime."

To you and other friends, more or less familiar with Chambersburg, it will be interesting to specify a little more particularly the localities which have been laid waste. Beginning on East Market street, the one leading from Gettysburg to Pittsburg, directly through the centre of the town from east to west, the burning commenced simultaneously with the Court-house and Mansion-house (Printing Establishment of the German Reformed Church).

Facing the west from the Franklin railroad, the first building to the right is the residence of the Misses Denny, in a somewhat isolated position. This stands in its freshness and beauty, solitary and alone.

Pa.s.sing down two squares to the centre of the town, not one building and only two or three stables or barns remain on either side of this street of private residences, my own with all of my library and ma.n.u.scripts, among the number. Pa.s.sing further on westward for more than three squares in length, to the top of "New England Hill," five or six more or less isolated houses remain. The large Franklin Hotel, the Arcade Buildings, John B. Cook's houses and tannery, Riley's Hotel, the late Matthew Gillan's large dwelling, J. M. Wolfkill's store and dwelling, G. W.

Brewer's and Mrs. Joseph Chambers's beautiful residences, are among the many valuable properties on this street, in ruins.

Then from North Main street (the street from Carlisle to Greencastle), beginning with Mr. Benjamin Chambers's new residence, at the Falling Spring, and Mr. W. G. Reed's, on the corner, and from here on every house on both sides up the square, on to the centre, across it to Queen street, and up to Washington street, with the exception of Rev. Dr. Fisher's, Mr.

Reineman's, Lehner's, and Feltman's dwellings, every house, shop, stable, &c., is gone. This street, as you know, contained more than three-fourths of all our stores, ware-rooms, and shops of business. Then comes Queen street, at the intersection of Second street, beginning at Brandt's (now Brown's) hotel, which was only partially destroyed, sweeping every building (except Mrs. Brandt's dwelling), on both sides down to the creek, over two squares, including Dr. Culbertson's, N. Snider's, Barnard Wolff's, Mr. Wallace's, and other valuable dwellings and stores. Between eleven and twelve squares of the best part of the town are, therefore, in ruins, among them houses of many, inhabitants, whom you knew in former years as among your dearest friends, and in comfortable or affluent circ.u.mstances, many of them now reduced to penury and want.

After I had written the preceding pages, I found a minute and well-written statement of the subject now in hand in the "Franklin Repository," of this place, of August 24. I take pleasure in giving the following extracts from the same, instead of my own, as the matter was evidently prepared with judgment and care, under the supervision of its editor, Colonel McClure.

He says:

"It seems inexplicable to persons and journals at a distance that General Couch, a Major-General commanding a department, with his border repeatedly invaded, should have no troops. The natural inclination is to blame the commander, for it is reasonable to suppose that he would endeavor to have an adequate command, and also that ample authority would be given him to have sufficient force. Just where the blame belongs, we do not choose now to discuss; but we do know that it was no fault of General Couch that he was unable to defend Chambersburg. He organized a Provost Guard regiment, some twelve hundred strong, expressly for duty in his department; the men were enlisted under a positive a.s.surance, based on the order authorizing the organization, that they were to be kept on duty in the department.

They were ordered to General Grant after the battles of the Wilderness. He organized six regiments of one hundred days' men before the advent of McCausland, and they were ordered to Washington as soon as they were ready to move. We are a.s.sured that Governor Curtin, fully two weeks before the burning of Chambersburg, formally pledged the State to make provision for arming, organizing, and paying the entire militia force of the border for home defence, if the General Government would simply give the uniforms; and we believe that General Couch pressed it upon the Washington authorities to uniform the entire force of the southern counties, a.s.suring them that the people were willing to defend themselves if encouraged by granting them uniforms, so as to save them from inhuman butchery, but it was denied. We do not speak advisedly as to General Couch's correspondence with the Washington authorities; we give no statements at his instance, or based upon information received from him or his officers; but we do write whereof we know, when we say that every effort was made to carry these measures into effect, and that they were not sanctioned at Washington.

While we do not a.s.sume to fix the responsibility of this terrible disaster, we do mean that it shall not fall upon a commander who was shorn of his strength and left helpless with his people.

The Rebels Enter Chambersburg