[newspaper clipping continued: part two]
The foregoing furnishes a faithful narrative of the
disposition of my command throughout this eventful
day.
Between 4 and 5 o clock, Gen. KEARNY, with all
his characteristic gallantry, arrived on the ground at
the head of his division, and after having secured
their positions, my division was withdrawn from the
contest, and held as a reserve until dark, when the
battle ended, after a prolonged and severe conflict
against three times my number, directed by the most
accomplished General of the rebel army. Maj.-Gen.
J.E. JOHNSTON, assisted by Gens. LONGSTREET, PRYOR,
GOHLSON and PICKETT, with commands selected from
the best troops in their army.
The list of killed and wounded attests the character
of the contest. The killed of the enemy must have
been double my own; of the wounded, we cannot es-
timate. Eight hundred were left in hospitals at Wil-
liamburgh, and others were distributed among the pri-
vate houses in the city, while all the available tene-
ments in the vicinity of the field of battle are filled
with them. Three hundred prisoners were taken.
I have omitted to mention the arrival, early in the
afternoon of Brig.-Gen. HEINTZELMAN, commanding
the Third Army Corps, with his staff, and to express
my very grateful acknowledgment for the encourage-
ment inspired by his presence, and for the aid and
support he gave me by his counsel and conduct.
As soon as darkness concealed their movements,
the rebels retreated in a state of utter demoralization,
leaving behind artillery, wagons, &c., &c.
History will not be believed, when it is told that the
noble officers and men of my Division were permitted to
carry on this unequal struggle from morning until night
unaided, in the presence of more than 30,000 of their
comrades with arms in their hands. Nevertheless, it is
true.
If we failed to capture the rebel army on the plains
of Williamsburgh, it surely will not be ascribed to
the want of conduct and courage in my command.
The field was marked by an unusual number of in-
stances of conspicuous courage and daring, which I
shall seek an early opportunity to bring to the notice
of the Commander of the Third Corps.
At this time I can speak but in general terms of the
regiments and batteries engaged in the battle of Wil-
liamsburgh. Their list of the killed and wounded
from among their numbers will forever determine the
extent of their participation in this hard-fought and
dearly-contested field. Their constancy and courage
are deserving all praise. My profound and grateful
acknowledgments are tendered to them.
I am under great obligations to the officers of my
staff for eminent services, and especially to Capt.
JOSEPH DICKINSON, my Assistant Adjutant-General,
and to my Aides-de-Camp, Lieuts. WM. H. LAWRENCE
and JOSEPH ABBOT, who were with me throughout the
day.
The loss of my Division on this field was:
Commissioned officers killed ...................... 21
Commissioned officers wounded ................... 65
Enlisted men killed ............................... 317
Enlisted men wounded ............................ 837
Enlisted men missing .............................. 335
Total ........................................ 1,575
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
(Signed) JOSEPH HOOKER,
Brigadier-General Commanding Division.
| Page |
| Title: | Thomas Butler Gunn Diaries, Volume Nineteen: page one hundred and ninety-eight |
| Description: | Newspaper clipping of General Hooker's official report of the Battle of Williamsburg. |
| Date: | 1862-05-10 |
| Subject: | Abbott, Joseph (soldier); Averill, Colonel; Battle of Williamsburg (Va.); Blaisdell, Colonel; Casualties; Civil War; Curriee; Dickinson, Joseph; Emory, William H.; Gohlson; Grover, Cuvier; Gunn, Thomas Butler; Heintzelman, Samuel Peter; Hooker, Joseph; Johnston, Joseph E.; Kearny, Philip; Longstreet, James; Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, 1st; Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, 11th; McAllester, Lieutenant; McKeever, Chauncey; Military; New Hampshire Infantry Regiment, 2nd; New Jersey Infantry Regiment, 5th; New Jersey Infantry Regiment, 6th; New Jersey Infantry Regiment, 7th; New Jersey Infantry Regiment, 8th; New York Infantry Regiment, 70th; New York Infantry Regiment, 72nd; New York Infantry Regiment, 73rd; New York Infantry Regiment, 74th; Patterson, Francis E.; Peninsular Campaign (Va.); Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment, 3rd; Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, 26th; Pickett; Pryor; Smith, Captain; Stoneman, George; Taylor, Colonel; Wainwright, Major |
| Coverage (City/State): | Williamsburg, Virginia; Yorktown, Virginia |
| Scan Date: | 2010-06-17 |
| Volume |
| Title: | Thomas Butler Gunn Diaries, Volume Nineteen |
| Description: | Includes Gunn's descriptions of his experiences as a war correspondent for ""The New York Tribune"" in Virginia while traveling with the Army of the Potomac during the Peninsular Campaign; the Siege of Yorktown; the Battle of Williamsburg; his departure from Alexandria on the steamer Kent; the ruins of Hampton, Virginia, after it was burnt by John B. Magruder; touring the gunboat Monitor; the death of Fitz James O'Brien from a gunshot wound; Jim Parton's temporary separation from Fanny Fern; and seeing Robert E. Lee's house in Virginia. |
| Subject: | Civil War; Gunn, Thomas Butler; Journalism; Marches (U.S. Army); Marriage; Medical care (U.S. Army); Military; Military camp life; Peninsular Campaign (Va.); Prisoners of war (Confederate); Siege of Yorktown (Va.); Slavery; Slaves; Travel; Women |
| Coverage (City/State): | New York, New York; Washington, District of Columbia; Alexandria, Virginia; Hampton, Virginia; Yorktown, Virginia; Williamsburg, Virginia |
| Note: | Thomas Butler Gunn was born February 15, 1826, in Banbury, England, and came to New York in 1849. During the Civil War he worked as a correspondent for the New York Tribune and the New York Evening Post. He returned to England in 1863, and died in Birmingham in April 1903. The collection includes twenty-one volumes of his diaries, including newspaper clippings, letters, photographs, sketches, and various other items inserted by Gunn. Diary entries date from July 7, 1849, to April 7, 1863, and include his experiences with the New York publishing and literary world, his descriptions of boarding houses, his travels throughout the United States, and his experiences traveling with the Federal army as a Civil War correspondent. |
| Publisher: | Missouri History Museum |
| Rights: | Copyright 2010 Missouri History Museum. |
| Source: | Page images, transcriptions, and metadata of the Thomas Butler Gunn diaries have been provided by the Missouri History Museum. |
