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The Cedar Falls Reserves and
The Battle Above the Clouds
Company flag, “B” Company, 31st Iowa Volunteer Infantry. The flag was displayed in camp
during the first few months of service, then sent back home. On display at the Iowa Veterans
Museum, Waterloo, Iowa
In the spring of 1845, William Sturgis moved his family to a likely spot along the Cedar River in northeast part of Iowa. Several small rivers and streams fed into the Cedar, and it in turn emptied into the Mississippi. Realizing that as farms sprang up in the area farmers would need access to the big river and the markets beyond, Sturgis thought to establish a town that would soon bear his name- Sturgis Falls. Sturgis soon sold his claim to the Overman brothers, John and Dempsey, and returned to Iowa City. Once a mill was built on the river, grain started arriving from as far up the river as Fort Dodge. In 1850, a new 5 story mill replaced the original one, and added sawmill functionality to the grist mill. As the small town grew throughout the 1850s, the name was changed to Cedar Falls (both the town and river names come from the frequent stands of trees along the banks.) Eventually, nine water wheels powered four mills and a water-powered furniture making concern. A brick factory was turning out many thousands of bricks a year by the mid 1850’s. Cedar Falls was the original county seat of Black Hawk County, but the county records were stolen by men from nearby Waterloo, and eventually Waterloo’s larger population got it the seat legitimately. Settlers from New England were the majority of Cedar Falls’ early population, along with refugees from the troubled German states, and this meant that political sentiment was heavily free soil and Republican. The town’s first paper moved to Waterloo, and brothers Henry and George Perkins founded the Cedar Falls Gazette as a Republican counterpoint to the fiercely pro-southern Gate City Times of Dubuque. The 1860 census revealed a population of over 1500 in Cedar Falls proper, but although it boasted easy river access it still lacked a railroad connection. The Dubuque and Sioux City Railroad obliged with a spur from Waterloo that opened with a special excursion (and much fanfare) on April 11, 1861. The first regular train came the next day- bearing the news that Fort Sumter had been fired upon.
The Pioneer Greys had been formed in January of 1861. The Cedar Falls militia company wasn’t accepted for the 1st Iowa Infantry, but was ordered into camp to (eventually) become Company K of the 3rd Iowa. Amidst a glorious sendoff, they left for Dubuque and thence to Keokuk on June 3rd. Over the next year they would serve at Blue Mills, Shiloh, and the siege of Corinth.
As it became apparent that the war would drag on, Lincoln issued a call for 300,000 more volunteers to put down the rebellion. In order to avoid the stigma of having to resort to the draft, the citizens of Cedar Falls decided to add $15 to the $100 bounty already being offered. At a patriotic rally at Overman Hall, prominent local citizens added $5 and tracts of land as an additional inducement for men to join the “Cedar Falls Reserves.” Enlistments began that evening- though given the large number of well-to-do men on the rolls, patriotism was a bigger factor than bounties. Elias Overman, son of a prominent merchant and grandson of a founder of the town, signed the roll, as did Daniel Sessions, son of leading citizen and patriot Colonel William Sessions. The co-editor of the Gazette, George Perkins, also enlisted. Businessmen James and Samuel Rownd each saw a son enlist in the Reserves. Mill owner Edwin Brown even took a partner in his business so that he could enlist. By mid-August, the Reserves were recruited up to 112 men.
Prominent lawyer and surveyor Robert Speer was elected captain of the company. First Lieutenant Theodore Stimming was a bespectacled German who brought military experience to the Reserves- he had been 4th Sergeant of Company H, 1st Iowa Infantry, and served gallantly at Wilsons Creek. 2nd Lieutenant Edward Townsend was a partner in the banking concern Townsend and Knapp. In general, the volunteers of ’62 were older than their ’61 counterparts, and that trend definitely held true in the Cedar Falls Reserves. The average age was 27, and over the course of the war 34 men in their thirties served in the company. 6 men in their forties served, and even one 60-year old served in the company. Before they set off, the younger single men in the company voted to give their local bounty money to the married men.
On August 15th, the Ladies Aid presented the Reserves a silk flag with “Presented by the Ladies of Cedar Falls” emblazoned across the stripes. September 4th saw the company board a train for Dubuque. In contrast to the Pioneer Grays’ sendoff the year before, there were no brass bands, bunting or speeches- just teary relatives at the station to see them board the cars and go. They rode in open gravel cars, but the journey was made more bearable by two barrels of beer. Initially quartered at Minnesota House hotel and the armory hall, they were soon moved to Camp Franklin just outside of town. They filled their days with drill while waiting to be assigned to a regiment (their initial assignment fell through.) On September 7th, the Reserves were formed up and marched to the City Brewery, where they were treated to a round by the local Adam’s Express agent.
At the end of the month, word came that the Cedar Falls Reserves would become Company B of the 31st Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment. On October 2nd, they embarked on the steamer Bill Henderson for Davenport, arriving on the 6th and going into camp at the brand new Camp Herron. On the 10th, the Reserves were issued their first uniforms. October 12th and 13th saw them first mustered into state service, and then into the United States Army. William Smyth, a lawyer and district court judge from Marion, would be colonel of the new regiment. Jeremiah Jenkins, one of the leading citizens of Maquoketa, would be its lieutenant colonel. Ezekiel Cutler, a lawyer from Anamosa, would be Major.
On October 19th, the new regiment received its first arms. The flank companies (A & B) received Enfield rifle-muskets, while the other eight companies had to make do with inferior Prussian smoothbores. On November 1st, the 31st Iowa boarded the steamer Sucker State for St. Louis, arriving on the 5th and proceeding to Benton Barracks. The regiment was happy to learn that the 8 companies with the Prussian smoothbores would be trading them in for Enfields. Their time at the training center would be brief however, as they were ordered onto the Continental on 11/8, and drew hardtack for the first time- provisions for the long river voyage downstream for the seat of war.
After 12 days and 497 miles on the river, the 31st finally landed at Helena, Arkansas on November 20th. The army camp at Helena was large and inhospitable in the Arkansas winter- constant rain had turned it into a sea of mud. Orders quickly came to be part of an expedition to Cold Water Mississippi. The first real marching for the regiment saw the side of the road strewn with excess impedimenta, like so many units before them. The expedition was intended to drive rebels away from the vicinity of the critical supply depot, but several cotton gins, two houses, and a large number of cotton bales were also burned in the process. The force arrived back at Helena on December 7th, and built huts in preparation to winter there.
Grant had other plans, however. He planned to demonstrate against Vicksburg from the north, allowing forces under his subordinate Sherman to attack the city’s defenses from the river while its attention was drawn northward. However, Grant was compelled to give up the feinting movement and the Vicksburg defenses (already more formidable than the federals realized) were fully manned.
The 31st Iowa was slated to be part of Sherman’s ill-fated force. On December 22nd, they embarked on the steamers “Champion” and “Louisiana,” which steamed down the Mississippi and entered the Yazoo River. On the 27th, they landed at a plantation that had been owned by the late rebel general Albert Sidney Johnston. As a green regiment, the 31st Iowa was assigned a supporting position in the assault. As they huddled on the swampy ground, they were in the uncomfortable position of having to endure shelling without being able to return fire. Leonard Knowles of Company B was wounded during the bombardment. Another shell burst very near to the men from Cedar Falls, but miraculously the only casualty was a coffee pot. The more experienced regiments in the front line of the attack were cut apart as they fruitlessly attempted to navigate the frigid bayou, and never had a chance at taking the works. After a night of cold rain, the federals waved a flag of truce in order to be able to retrieve their dead and wounded before steaming back upstream. The 31st Iowa was employed in this grisly task, a horrific introduction to the horrors of war for the inexperienced regiment.
The next move in the campaign for Vicksburg was a fortification twenty miles up the Arkansas river called Arkansas Post. It was there to defend against federal incursion down the Arkansas river, as well as acting as a shipping depot for supplies headed for Vicksburg. In early January 1863, a force was sent to capture it, including the 31st Iowa. On January 9th, the 31st embarked on boats and landed the same day, a few miles from Arkansas Post. January 10th saw them making slow progress toward the fort, as one line of approach had to be abandoned due to high water. After marching through the night, Company B was thrown out in front of the brigade as skirmishers. They came upon the garrison’s barracks (located outside the works) and, finding them deserted, confiscated the rebels’ breakfast. As the navy bombarded the works’ batteries, the infantry formed up for an assault. The 31st Iowa was lined up next to the 3rd Missouri, and as they advanced their lines became tangled. The attack bogged down 100 yards from the works, and they were compelled to fall back. In an attempt to find a weak point in the works, the 31st was sent out to the flank. Again, the Cedar Falls Reserves were used as skirmishers, at one point having to cross a deep streambed on a log. Just as they were ordered back to the regiment and were preparing to make a second charge, a white flag flew over the works and the garrison of over 5000 surrendered. James Richardson of Company B was wounded in the fight, one of 11 members of the 31st Iowa to be wounded in the action.
After Arkansas Post, the newly reorganized Army of the Tennessee (of which the 31st Iowa was part of Sherman’s newly designated 15th Corps) settled down in encampments along the Mississippi above Vicksburg, stretched out from Milliken’s Bend to Young’s Point. The 31st settled into a drudgery of working on corduroy roads for supply wagons, and occasionally taking a turn working on digging a canal to bypass the city (which was eventually abandoned.) The constant rain and cold temperatures made the camps miserable, and sickness swept through the army- and the newer regiments were hit the hardest. Some days as few as 5 men reported at roll call for Company B. As many as 5 or 6 men were dying each day in the regiment, with as many being discharged for disability continually. In March, Major Cutler’s health became so bad that he was compelled to resign his commission and return to Iowa. Partly on the strength of his prior military experience, Lieutenant Stimming of the Reserves was promoted to major. By the time the spring campaign opened, the 31st Iowa’s effective strength had been reduced from nearly 1000 to 350.
After the 31st participated in a small raid into the interior of Mississippi, the Army of the Tennessee began assembling for an attempt to get at Vicksburg from the south- by land. After a flotilla of transports ran the gauntlet of the Vicksburg guns, Grant landed his army at Port Gibson on May 1st. On May 12th, the 31st Iowa had the lead of the XV Corps and drove rebel skirmishers away from the banks of Fourteen Mile Creek. The regiment was not otherwise engaged during the per-siege portion of the campaign. They did, along with the rest of the army, enjoy the spoils of the city of Jackson on 5/14 and its huge supply of confederate commissary stores.
The assault on the works of Vicksburg of May 19th saw the 31st Iowa still marching for its position in the line (the far left) and it did not participate in the assault, though its march was under sporadic artillery and musket fire from the city. Lyman Tondro of Company B was badly wounded by a musket ball on this day. For the assault on the 22nd, the regiment was assigned a support position behind the 9th Iowa, which suffered fearfully as it tried and failed to take a very steep hill. The attacks were called off before the 31st Iowa could take its turn, but it did suffer several men wounded, including Lieutenant Colonel Jeremiah Jenkins.
After the failed assaults came the siege. The 31st Iowa’s brigade was assigned the far left (southernmost) place in the siege line, along the Mississippi River. The 25th Iowa’s place was directly on the riverbank, with the 31st alongside it. The continuous sniping every day took its toll, and the Reserves’ John Rownd was wounded during the siege, and Charles Seavy was killed. The hot Mississippi sun and malarial climate continued to exact their price as well, and Company B lost David Hartsough to disease during this period.
After the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4th, Grant ordered Sherman’s 15th Corps to drive off Johnston’s relief force from where it was lurking at Jackson. The 31st Iowa and the other regiments of the corps were deployed and ready to attack the rebel works on the morning of 7/17, but the rebels had evacuated the town the night before. The corps returned to the vicinity of Vicksburg and went into camp on the Big Black River. As part of a reorganization of the Army of the Tennessee, the 31st Iowa was assigned to an all-Iowa brigade, commanded by Colonel James Williamson of the 4th Iowa.
On September 24th, the 1st Division of the 15th Corps embarked on transports at the Vicksburg wharf, bound for Memphis, Tennessee. From there, they journeyed by railroad to Corinth. The 2nd (Iowa) Brigade proceeded from there to Iuka, to guard and help rebuild the rail lines, arriving on October 12th. On the 13th, the 31st Iowa cast their votes for Governor of Iowa. Both candidates were military men- the Democrats nominated General James Tuttle (formerly of the 2nd Iowa,) the Republicans Colonel William Stone (formerly of the 3rd Iowa.) The Cedar Falls Reserves were overwhelmingly Republicans, and that allegiance showed. The vote in the 31st Iowa as a whole was 167 to 67 in favor of Stone, and Stone would win the overall vote comfortably.
Soon thereafter, the 1st Division began to move toward Alabama. They soon met resistance, and the last week of October saw fighting nearly every day, with the Reserves (as the left flank company of the regiment) thrown out as skirmishers nearly continuously. On October 30th, the force reached Eastport Landing, Alabama. After crossing the Tennessee River, they began their swift march to Chattanooga to relieve the besieged Army of the Cumberland. Reuniting with the rest of the 15th Corps on the way, they were on the move by 5:00 AM most days and often didn’t collapse for some sleep until midnight. On November 17th, they reached Stevenson, Alabama, and the 31st Iowa drew rations and new clothing. On November 20th, the corps drew one hundred rounds of ammunition per man, and camped within sight of Lookout Mountain, though it was yet many miles away.
As the 15th Corps approached Lookout Valley, two more crossings of the Tennessee River were required to reach the Cumberland army while avoiding the rebels’ siege lines. After the other divisions made their crossing, a raft sent downriver by the rebels smashed through the pontoon bridge, disabling it. Because of the time that would be required to repair it, Sherman decided to simply detach the 1st Division for temporary service under General Hooker, who was operating on that side of the river.
Hooker’s command was now a thoroughly hybrid force- it was comprised of one division from each of three armies- the Cumberland, the Potomac, and the Tennessee. Hooker was directed by Grant to move on Lookout Mountain, which he did on the morning of November 24th.
Williamson’s Iowa brigade was initially assigned as support for the artillery, as it opened up on the mountain while the other troops started their ascent. Around 11:30, rebel resistance began to stiffen on a plateau that contained the Craven farm. The Iowans were called forward, though they remained in a support position as they began to ascend Lookout. By 4:00PM, the initial regiments began to run low on ammunition, and the 31st Iowa was called on to move into the firing line. Though the fog and low-hanging clouds, in addition to the gunsmoke, made visibility near zero; and the ascent was near vertical at times; the federal line continued to steadily push the rebels back. When darkness fell on the mountain (around 6:30,) it became too dangerous to try to continue the advance up the treacherous slope. The firing from both sides continued, however, and the rebels made some probing advances, apparently attempting to see if the yankees intended to stay in possession of their portion of the mountain overnight. The 31st Iowa was on the front line of this continued firing all night. The 31st Iowa was located on the left of the brigade line, which made Company B the extreme left of the brigade front. Despite the low visibility, it was apparent that the road to their left was undefended, with another brigade’s right flank a few yards off it. Captain Speer went over to this brigade, and pleaded with its commander to extend his lines to cover the gap, but he declared that his orders were to place his right flank on the road and that he would not exceed those orders. The exchange became heated, but eventually the thoroughly outranked Speer gave up and went back to his regiment (decades later, the two old soldiers would exchange letters and clear the air.) At one point, after beating back repeated rebel advances on their front, Captain Speer decided the spirits of the Cedar Falls Reserves needed bucking up. He ordered Private Horace Cooper to sing for the men, and he obliged during the next lull in the firing with comic renditions of “The Low-Backed Cat” and “Root, Hog, or Die.” Others in the regiment caught up the idea, and soon any slackening in the firing was filled with the crowing of roosters, the honking of geese, and any number of other barnyard animals.
The firing finally slackened around midnight. The Iowans were obliged to stay alert the rest of the night, and spent a miserable few hours before sunup in the cold late November air (on the side of a mountain, no less) with no fires or opportunity to lay out a blanket. Sunrise revealed that the rebels had left the mountain to them, and the Battle Above the Clouds was over.
The next day, Hooker’s hodgepodge force attacked the left end of the rebel line on Missionary Ridge. It took some time to traverse Lookout Valley and two intervening streams, however, and by the time they arrived at the left rear of the ridge, the rebels were reeling from the Army of the Cumberland’s impromptu attack on the center. The left was not panicked yet however, and after an hour’s firefight the rebels were driven backward toward their line of retreat. The 31st Iowa’s colors were among the first in the works on this end of the line. It quickly became a mopping-up operation, and the Iowa Brigade took several hundred prisoners and captured multiple cannons. Men of the brigade captured rebel corps commander John Breckinridge’s son, and the fine horse he was riding (which General Osterhaus promptly commandeered for himself.) Among the prisoners were some men who had fought the previous night on Lookout. They inquired as to the identity of the men opposite them who had sung and crowed like roosters during the battle, and the Iowans proudly claimed the credit. Seeing the entire rebel army in flight, the union men cheered wildly from atop Missionary Ridge. Lt. Col. Jenkins managed to cajol the captured horse from Osterhaus and galloped it up and down the line in celebration.
George Rath of Company B had been killed a few yards from the rebel works, and after the fight his younger brother John (also a member of the Reserves) buried him on the reverse slope of the ridge. Over the two days’ battles, three other members of Company B had been wounded: Orderly Sergeant Thomas Salisbury, Corporal Spencer Fellows, and Private Darius Orcutt.
The next year’s campaign was hard on the Reserves, as the company suffered two men wounded, five killed, and two captured as the 31st Iowa was engaged at Resaca, Dallas, and Kennesaw Mountain. Another man was killed in a skirmish during the South Carolina campaign. Williamson’s Iowa Brigade was the first unit to march into Columbia, and as such was assigned as provost guard. Some accounts claim that the brigade found a warehouse full of whiskey and were unable to prevent the fires that soon consumed the city.
After Johnston’s surrender, the 31st Iowa participated in the Grand Review, including just over 30 members (out of a total of 121 that had served, including late enlistees/draftees) of the Cedar Falls Reserves. A few days later they departed Washington for Louisville by train. Many of the men of Company B sat for images in their brand new uniforms. They were mustered out of federal service and discharged on July 1st, 1865. The next morning, they were on a steamer bound for Dubuque, which they reached in the early morning hours of July 3rd. Many of the men made their reappearance at home on, fittingly, Independence Day.
Monument to the Civil War dead of Cedar Falls in Greenwood
Cemetery, Cedar Falls, Iowa
Chain of Command 11/24/1863 Chattanooga, Tennessee
Military Division of the Mississippi Major General Ulysses S. Grant
Army of the Tennessee Major General William T. Sherman
15th Corps Major General Francis P. Blair, Jr.
(the division was temporarily detached on 11/20/1863, under Major General Joseph Hooker)
1st Division Major General Peter J. Osterhaus
2nd Brigade Colonel James A. Williamson
31st Iowa Volunteer Infantry Lieutenant Colonel Jeremiah W. Jenkins
Company B Captain Robert Speer
This brief history was compiled from the research of others, for the sole benefit of participants in the living history at Lookout Mountain in June 2017, hosted by the Hairy Nation. In the main, this sketch draws on the works of a mentor and friend, Kenneth Lyftogt.
From Blue Mills to Columbia: Cedar Falls and the Civil War
Left For Dixie: the Civil War Diary of John Rath
Other works consulted include, in order of importance:
Since I Started For the War: The Letters & Diary of Solomon B. Humbert Jeanine Johnson, Cynthia Sweet
Roster & Record of Iowa Soldiers in the War of the Rebellion Iowa Adjutant General’s Office
Letter from Andrew Henderson (Co G 31st Iowa,) as quoted in Iowa Valor Steve Meyer
Chattanooga- A Death Grip on the Confederacy James Lee McDonough
Diary of an unidentified member of the 31st Iowa Infantry, property of the Missouri History Museum
Six Armies in Tennessee: The Chickamauga and Chattanooga Campaigns Steven E. Woodworth
The Shipwreck of Their Hopes Peter Cozzens
The Chattanooga Campaign Steven E. Woodworth (ed.)
The Battle Above the Clouds
Company flag, “B” Company, 31st Iowa Volunteer Infantry. The flag was displayed in camp
during the first few months of service, then sent back home. On display at the Iowa Veterans
Museum, Waterloo, Iowa
In the spring of 1845, William Sturgis moved his family to a likely spot along the Cedar River in northeast part of Iowa. Several small rivers and streams fed into the Cedar, and it in turn emptied into the Mississippi. Realizing that as farms sprang up in the area farmers would need access to the big river and the markets beyond, Sturgis thought to establish a town that would soon bear his name- Sturgis Falls. Sturgis soon sold his claim to the Overman brothers, John and Dempsey, and returned to Iowa City. Once a mill was built on the river, grain started arriving from as far up the river as Fort Dodge. In 1850, a new 5 story mill replaced the original one, and added sawmill functionality to the grist mill. As the small town grew throughout the 1850s, the name was changed to Cedar Falls (both the town and river names come from the frequent stands of trees along the banks.) Eventually, nine water wheels powered four mills and a water-powered furniture making concern. A brick factory was turning out many thousands of bricks a year by the mid 1850’s. Cedar Falls was the original county seat of Black Hawk County, but the county records were stolen by men from nearby Waterloo, and eventually Waterloo’s larger population got it the seat legitimately. Settlers from New England were the majority of Cedar Falls’ early population, along with refugees from the troubled German states, and this meant that political sentiment was heavily free soil and Republican. The town’s first paper moved to Waterloo, and brothers Henry and George Perkins founded the Cedar Falls Gazette as a Republican counterpoint to the fiercely pro-southern Gate City Times of Dubuque. The 1860 census revealed a population of over 1500 in Cedar Falls proper, but although it boasted easy river access it still lacked a railroad connection. The Dubuque and Sioux City Railroad obliged with a spur from Waterloo that opened with a special excursion (and much fanfare) on April 11, 1861. The first regular train came the next day- bearing the news that Fort Sumter had been fired upon.
The Pioneer Greys had been formed in January of 1861. The Cedar Falls militia company wasn’t accepted for the 1st Iowa Infantry, but was ordered into camp to (eventually) become Company K of the 3rd Iowa. Amidst a glorious sendoff, they left for Dubuque and thence to Keokuk on June 3rd. Over the next year they would serve at Blue Mills, Shiloh, and the siege of Corinth.
As it became apparent that the war would drag on, Lincoln issued a call for 300,000 more volunteers to put down the rebellion. In order to avoid the stigma of having to resort to the draft, the citizens of Cedar Falls decided to add $15 to the $100 bounty already being offered. At a patriotic rally at Overman Hall, prominent local citizens added $5 and tracts of land as an additional inducement for men to join the “Cedar Falls Reserves.” Enlistments began that evening- though given the large number of well-to-do men on the rolls, patriotism was a bigger factor than bounties. Elias Overman, son of a prominent merchant and grandson of a founder of the town, signed the roll, as did Daniel Sessions, son of leading citizen and patriot Colonel William Sessions. The co-editor of the Gazette, George Perkins, also enlisted. Businessmen James and Samuel Rownd each saw a son enlist in the Reserves. Mill owner Edwin Brown even took a partner in his business so that he could enlist. By mid-August, the Reserves were recruited up to 112 men.
Prominent lawyer and surveyor Robert Speer was elected captain of the company. First Lieutenant Theodore Stimming was a bespectacled German who brought military experience to the Reserves- he had been 4th Sergeant of Company H, 1st Iowa Infantry, and served gallantly at Wilsons Creek. 2nd Lieutenant Edward Townsend was a partner in the banking concern Townsend and Knapp. In general, the volunteers of ’62 were older than their ’61 counterparts, and that trend definitely held true in the Cedar Falls Reserves. The average age was 27, and over the course of the war 34 men in their thirties served in the company. 6 men in their forties served, and even one 60-year old served in the company. Before they set off, the younger single men in the company voted to give their local bounty money to the married men.
On August 15th, the Ladies Aid presented the Reserves a silk flag with “Presented by the Ladies of Cedar Falls” emblazoned across the stripes. September 4th saw the company board a train for Dubuque. In contrast to the Pioneer Grays’ sendoff the year before, there were no brass bands, bunting or speeches- just teary relatives at the station to see them board the cars and go. They rode in open gravel cars, but the journey was made more bearable by two barrels of beer. Initially quartered at Minnesota House hotel and the armory hall, they were soon moved to Camp Franklin just outside of town. They filled their days with drill while waiting to be assigned to a regiment (their initial assignment fell through.) On September 7th, the Reserves were formed up and marched to the City Brewery, where they were treated to a round by the local Adam’s Express agent.
At the end of the month, word came that the Cedar Falls Reserves would become Company B of the 31st Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment. On October 2nd, they embarked on the steamer Bill Henderson for Davenport, arriving on the 6th and going into camp at the brand new Camp Herron. On the 10th, the Reserves were issued their first uniforms. October 12th and 13th saw them first mustered into state service, and then into the United States Army. William Smyth, a lawyer and district court judge from Marion, would be colonel of the new regiment. Jeremiah Jenkins, one of the leading citizens of Maquoketa, would be its lieutenant colonel. Ezekiel Cutler, a lawyer from Anamosa, would be Major.
On October 19th, the new regiment received its first arms. The flank companies (A & B) received Enfield rifle-muskets, while the other eight companies had to make do with inferior Prussian smoothbores. On November 1st, the 31st Iowa boarded the steamer Sucker State for St. Louis, arriving on the 5th and proceeding to Benton Barracks. The regiment was happy to learn that the 8 companies with the Prussian smoothbores would be trading them in for Enfields. Their time at the training center would be brief however, as they were ordered onto the Continental on 11/8, and drew hardtack for the first time- provisions for the long river voyage downstream for the seat of war.
After 12 days and 497 miles on the river, the 31st finally landed at Helena, Arkansas on November 20th. The army camp at Helena was large and inhospitable in the Arkansas winter- constant rain had turned it into a sea of mud. Orders quickly came to be part of an expedition to Cold Water Mississippi. The first real marching for the regiment saw the side of the road strewn with excess impedimenta, like so many units before them. The expedition was intended to drive rebels away from the vicinity of the critical supply depot, but several cotton gins, two houses, and a large number of cotton bales were also burned in the process. The force arrived back at Helena on December 7th, and built huts in preparation to winter there.
Grant had other plans, however. He planned to demonstrate against Vicksburg from the north, allowing forces under his subordinate Sherman to attack the city’s defenses from the river while its attention was drawn northward. However, Grant was compelled to give up the feinting movement and the Vicksburg defenses (already more formidable than the federals realized) were fully manned.
The 31st Iowa was slated to be part of Sherman’s ill-fated force. On December 22nd, they embarked on the steamers “Champion” and “Louisiana,” which steamed down the Mississippi and entered the Yazoo River. On the 27th, they landed at a plantation that had been owned by the late rebel general Albert Sidney Johnston. As a green regiment, the 31st Iowa was assigned a supporting position in the assault. As they huddled on the swampy ground, they were in the uncomfortable position of having to endure shelling without being able to return fire. Leonard Knowles of Company B was wounded during the bombardment. Another shell burst very near to the men from Cedar Falls, but miraculously the only casualty was a coffee pot. The more experienced regiments in the front line of the attack were cut apart as they fruitlessly attempted to navigate the frigid bayou, and never had a chance at taking the works. After a night of cold rain, the federals waved a flag of truce in order to be able to retrieve their dead and wounded before steaming back upstream. The 31st Iowa was employed in this grisly task, a horrific introduction to the horrors of war for the inexperienced regiment.
The next move in the campaign for Vicksburg was a fortification twenty miles up the Arkansas river called Arkansas Post. It was there to defend against federal incursion down the Arkansas river, as well as acting as a shipping depot for supplies headed for Vicksburg. In early January 1863, a force was sent to capture it, including the 31st Iowa. On January 9th, the 31st embarked on boats and landed the same day, a few miles from Arkansas Post. January 10th saw them making slow progress toward the fort, as one line of approach had to be abandoned due to high water. After marching through the night, Company B was thrown out in front of the brigade as skirmishers. They came upon the garrison’s barracks (located outside the works) and, finding them deserted, confiscated the rebels’ breakfast. As the navy bombarded the works’ batteries, the infantry formed up for an assault. The 31st Iowa was lined up next to the 3rd Missouri, and as they advanced their lines became tangled. The attack bogged down 100 yards from the works, and they were compelled to fall back. In an attempt to find a weak point in the works, the 31st was sent out to the flank. Again, the Cedar Falls Reserves were used as skirmishers, at one point having to cross a deep streambed on a log. Just as they were ordered back to the regiment and were preparing to make a second charge, a white flag flew over the works and the garrison of over 5000 surrendered. James Richardson of Company B was wounded in the fight, one of 11 members of the 31st Iowa to be wounded in the action.
After Arkansas Post, the newly reorganized Army of the Tennessee (of which the 31st Iowa was part of Sherman’s newly designated 15th Corps) settled down in encampments along the Mississippi above Vicksburg, stretched out from Milliken’s Bend to Young’s Point. The 31st settled into a drudgery of working on corduroy roads for supply wagons, and occasionally taking a turn working on digging a canal to bypass the city (which was eventually abandoned.) The constant rain and cold temperatures made the camps miserable, and sickness swept through the army- and the newer regiments were hit the hardest. Some days as few as 5 men reported at roll call for Company B. As many as 5 or 6 men were dying each day in the regiment, with as many being discharged for disability continually. In March, Major Cutler’s health became so bad that he was compelled to resign his commission and return to Iowa. Partly on the strength of his prior military experience, Lieutenant Stimming of the Reserves was promoted to major. By the time the spring campaign opened, the 31st Iowa’s effective strength had been reduced from nearly 1000 to 350.
After the 31st participated in a small raid into the interior of Mississippi, the Army of the Tennessee began assembling for an attempt to get at Vicksburg from the south- by land. After a flotilla of transports ran the gauntlet of the Vicksburg guns, Grant landed his army at Port Gibson on May 1st. On May 12th, the 31st Iowa had the lead of the XV Corps and drove rebel skirmishers away from the banks of Fourteen Mile Creek. The regiment was not otherwise engaged during the per-siege portion of the campaign. They did, along with the rest of the army, enjoy the spoils of the city of Jackson on 5/14 and its huge supply of confederate commissary stores.
The assault on the works of Vicksburg of May 19th saw the 31st Iowa still marching for its position in the line (the far left) and it did not participate in the assault, though its march was under sporadic artillery and musket fire from the city. Lyman Tondro of Company B was badly wounded by a musket ball on this day. For the assault on the 22nd, the regiment was assigned a support position behind the 9th Iowa, which suffered fearfully as it tried and failed to take a very steep hill. The attacks were called off before the 31st Iowa could take its turn, but it did suffer several men wounded, including Lieutenant Colonel Jeremiah Jenkins.
After the failed assaults came the siege. The 31st Iowa’s brigade was assigned the far left (southernmost) place in the siege line, along the Mississippi River. The 25th Iowa’s place was directly on the riverbank, with the 31st alongside it. The continuous sniping every day took its toll, and the Reserves’ John Rownd was wounded during the siege, and Charles Seavy was killed. The hot Mississippi sun and malarial climate continued to exact their price as well, and Company B lost David Hartsough to disease during this period.
After the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4th, Grant ordered Sherman’s 15th Corps to drive off Johnston’s relief force from where it was lurking at Jackson. The 31st Iowa and the other regiments of the corps were deployed and ready to attack the rebel works on the morning of 7/17, but the rebels had evacuated the town the night before. The corps returned to the vicinity of Vicksburg and went into camp on the Big Black River. As part of a reorganization of the Army of the Tennessee, the 31st Iowa was assigned to an all-Iowa brigade, commanded by Colonel James Williamson of the 4th Iowa.
On September 24th, the 1st Division of the 15th Corps embarked on transports at the Vicksburg wharf, bound for Memphis, Tennessee. From there, they journeyed by railroad to Corinth. The 2nd (Iowa) Brigade proceeded from there to Iuka, to guard and help rebuild the rail lines, arriving on October 12th. On the 13th, the 31st Iowa cast their votes for Governor of Iowa. Both candidates were military men- the Democrats nominated General James Tuttle (formerly of the 2nd Iowa,) the Republicans Colonel William Stone (formerly of the 3rd Iowa.) The Cedar Falls Reserves were overwhelmingly Republicans, and that allegiance showed. The vote in the 31st Iowa as a whole was 167 to 67 in favor of Stone, and Stone would win the overall vote comfortably.
Soon thereafter, the 1st Division began to move toward Alabama. They soon met resistance, and the last week of October saw fighting nearly every day, with the Reserves (as the left flank company of the regiment) thrown out as skirmishers nearly continuously. On October 30th, the force reached Eastport Landing, Alabama. After crossing the Tennessee River, they began their swift march to Chattanooga to relieve the besieged Army of the Cumberland. Reuniting with the rest of the 15th Corps on the way, they were on the move by 5:00 AM most days and often didn’t collapse for some sleep until midnight. On November 17th, they reached Stevenson, Alabama, and the 31st Iowa drew rations and new clothing. On November 20th, the corps drew one hundred rounds of ammunition per man, and camped within sight of Lookout Mountain, though it was yet many miles away.
As the 15th Corps approached Lookout Valley, two more crossings of the Tennessee River were required to reach the Cumberland army while avoiding the rebels’ siege lines. After the other divisions made their crossing, a raft sent downriver by the rebels smashed through the pontoon bridge, disabling it. Because of the time that would be required to repair it, Sherman decided to simply detach the 1st Division for temporary service under General Hooker, who was operating on that side of the river.
Hooker’s command was now a thoroughly hybrid force- it was comprised of one division from each of three armies- the Cumberland, the Potomac, and the Tennessee. Hooker was directed by Grant to move on Lookout Mountain, which he did on the morning of November 24th.
Williamson’s Iowa brigade was initially assigned as support for the artillery, as it opened up on the mountain while the other troops started their ascent. Around 11:30, rebel resistance began to stiffen on a plateau that contained the Craven farm. The Iowans were called forward, though they remained in a support position as they began to ascend Lookout. By 4:00PM, the initial regiments began to run low on ammunition, and the 31st Iowa was called on to move into the firing line. Though the fog and low-hanging clouds, in addition to the gunsmoke, made visibility near zero; and the ascent was near vertical at times; the federal line continued to steadily push the rebels back. When darkness fell on the mountain (around 6:30,) it became too dangerous to try to continue the advance up the treacherous slope. The firing from both sides continued, however, and the rebels made some probing advances, apparently attempting to see if the yankees intended to stay in possession of their portion of the mountain overnight. The 31st Iowa was on the front line of this continued firing all night. The 31st Iowa was located on the left of the brigade line, which made Company B the extreme left of the brigade front. Despite the low visibility, it was apparent that the road to their left was undefended, with another brigade’s right flank a few yards off it. Captain Speer went over to this brigade, and pleaded with its commander to extend his lines to cover the gap, but he declared that his orders were to place his right flank on the road and that he would not exceed those orders. The exchange became heated, but eventually the thoroughly outranked Speer gave up and went back to his regiment (decades later, the two old soldiers would exchange letters and clear the air.) At one point, after beating back repeated rebel advances on their front, Captain Speer decided the spirits of the Cedar Falls Reserves needed bucking up. He ordered Private Horace Cooper to sing for the men, and he obliged during the next lull in the firing with comic renditions of “The Low-Backed Cat” and “Root, Hog, or Die.” Others in the regiment caught up the idea, and soon any slackening in the firing was filled with the crowing of roosters, the honking of geese, and any number of other barnyard animals.
The firing finally slackened around midnight. The Iowans were obliged to stay alert the rest of the night, and spent a miserable few hours before sunup in the cold late November air (on the side of a mountain, no less) with no fires or opportunity to lay out a blanket. Sunrise revealed that the rebels had left the mountain to them, and the Battle Above the Clouds was over.
The next day, Hooker’s hodgepodge force attacked the left end of the rebel line on Missionary Ridge. It took some time to traverse Lookout Valley and two intervening streams, however, and by the time they arrived at the left rear of the ridge, the rebels were reeling from the Army of the Cumberland’s impromptu attack on the center. The left was not panicked yet however, and after an hour’s firefight the rebels were driven backward toward their line of retreat. The 31st Iowa’s colors were among the first in the works on this end of the line. It quickly became a mopping-up operation, and the Iowa Brigade took several hundred prisoners and captured multiple cannons. Men of the brigade captured rebel corps commander John Breckinridge’s son, and the fine horse he was riding (which General Osterhaus promptly commandeered for himself.) Among the prisoners were some men who had fought the previous night on Lookout. They inquired as to the identity of the men opposite them who had sung and crowed like roosters during the battle, and the Iowans proudly claimed the credit. Seeing the entire rebel army in flight, the union men cheered wildly from atop Missionary Ridge. Lt. Col. Jenkins managed to cajol the captured horse from Osterhaus and galloped it up and down the line in celebration.
George Rath of Company B had been killed a few yards from the rebel works, and after the fight his younger brother John (also a member of the Reserves) buried him on the reverse slope of the ridge. Over the two days’ battles, three other members of Company B had been wounded: Orderly Sergeant Thomas Salisbury, Corporal Spencer Fellows, and Private Darius Orcutt.
The next year’s campaign was hard on the Reserves, as the company suffered two men wounded, five killed, and two captured as the 31st Iowa was engaged at Resaca, Dallas, and Kennesaw Mountain. Another man was killed in a skirmish during the South Carolina campaign. Williamson’s Iowa Brigade was the first unit to march into Columbia, and as such was assigned as provost guard. Some accounts claim that the brigade found a warehouse full of whiskey and were unable to prevent the fires that soon consumed the city.
After Johnston’s surrender, the 31st Iowa participated in the Grand Review, including just over 30 members (out of a total of 121 that had served, including late enlistees/draftees) of the Cedar Falls Reserves. A few days later they departed Washington for Louisville by train. Many of the men of Company B sat for images in their brand new uniforms. They were mustered out of federal service and discharged on July 1st, 1865. The next morning, they were on a steamer bound for Dubuque, which they reached in the early morning hours of July 3rd. Many of the men made their reappearance at home on, fittingly, Independence Day.
Monument to the Civil War dead of Cedar Falls in Greenwood
Cemetery, Cedar Falls, Iowa
Chain of Command 11/24/1863 Chattanooga, Tennessee
Military Division of the Mississippi Major General Ulysses S. Grant
Army of the Tennessee Major General William T. Sherman
15th Corps Major General Francis P. Blair, Jr.
(the division was temporarily detached on 11/20/1863, under Major General Joseph Hooker)
1st Division Major General Peter J. Osterhaus
2nd Brigade Colonel James A. Williamson
31st Iowa Volunteer Infantry Lieutenant Colonel Jeremiah W. Jenkins
Company B Captain Robert Speer
This brief history was compiled from the research of others, for the sole benefit of participants in the living history at Lookout Mountain in June 2017, hosted by the Hairy Nation. In the main, this sketch draws on the works of a mentor and friend, Kenneth Lyftogt.
From Blue Mills to Columbia: Cedar Falls and the Civil War
Left For Dixie: the Civil War Diary of John Rath
Other works consulted include, in order of importance:
Since I Started For the War: The Letters & Diary of Solomon B. Humbert Jeanine Johnson, Cynthia Sweet
Roster & Record of Iowa Soldiers in the War of the Rebellion Iowa Adjutant General’s Office
Letter from Andrew Henderson (Co G 31st Iowa,) as quoted in Iowa Valor Steve Meyer
Chattanooga- A Death Grip on the Confederacy James Lee McDonough
Diary of an unidentified member of the 31st Iowa Infantry, property of the Missouri History Museum
Six Armies in Tennessee: The Chickamauga and Chattanooga Campaigns Steven E. Woodworth
The Shipwreck of Their Hopes Peter Cozzens
The Chattanooga Campaign Steven E. Woodworth (ed.)
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