Where am I?

[kevin]

Greetings,
I'm not sure if this is the correct place to post this question. I got to thinking, and I was wondering: did the average private(north or south) really know where he was at the opening of a battle? Written accounts usually give a location but they are generally written after a battle has been fought. I'm speaking more in the terms of the soldier who marched all night and is going into battle. Did he know where he was? Obviously he couldn't know that he was at a great battle because the outcome was uncertain at that point in time. Was there open communication about where they were marching, fighting etc. or did the men in the ranks just hear camp gossip and for all a private knew as he lay dieing, he was shot (and killed) at Mechanicsburg, PA as opposed to Gettysburg, PA.
Not sure if I even got my point across, but anticipate some discussion.

[Andrew Kasmar]

Re: Where am I?

Hi,

I have been wondering the same thing.

[Charles Heath]

Re: Where am I?

Kevin,

The answer is probably "it depends," but you can get some idea by reading journals and letters. While a man may learn where he was between some event, such as a battle, and the time he makes an entry or writes home, many of the contemporary "quick jots" in a diary are revealing. Dane Utter and I were yapping about this diary today, and while not representative of every diary, it is worth reading, and may answer some of your questions.

http://wquercus.com/crowther/crowther_diary.htm

If you look carefully, the editor added in a second diary from another fellow as parallel information. This is a nice touch.

[1stMaine]

Re: Where am I?

Comrade,

For a good read and a lot of insight regarding what the common soldier (of any time period) knew anout his surroundings, read The Face of Battle, by John Keegan.

Although he does not specifically address our period, he looks at three seperate battles and points out what the common soldier would have seen, understood, etc. He references Agincourt, Waterloo, and the first day at The Somme. He shows how men from the same army, even though seperated by only a short distance, could have wildly differing experiences and descriptions of the same battle, and sometimes of the same event.

If nothing else, it is a great read and one I highly suggest to anyone interested in the experiences of the common soldier.

Respects,

[Marc]

From The Diary...

21st. At 5 o’clock in the morning we broke camp and marched to Winchester. We carried our stove with us. It was a very stormy morning. We went into camp near the city. The ground was covered with snow. We got a few boards together and soon put up a shanty. Put up our stove and made ourselves as comfortable as possible.

But I had my stove with me and I put it up in the car and made ourselves very comfortable. We laid down in the car and went to sleep. The


What a great diary....wonder what kind of stove or stoves he had?

[lhsnj]

Re: Where am I?

I am reading through: Hard Marching Every Day the Civil War Letters of Private Wilbur Fisk, 1861-1865

Pvt Fisk will refer to where he is and how many miles they marched that day in his letters home. He will note the direction and reference either a road or town or last camp.

In relation to going into battle, usually I have seen more references to where they are in location to other regiments and maybe a landmark..

ie.. the 5th regiment was on our left, or we passed by a farmhouse as we advanced from a treeline..

[Horace]

Re: Where am I?

In the memoir 'Turned Inside Out, Recollections of a Private Soldier in the Army of the Potomac' by Frank Wilkeson, he mentions carrying maps and actively tracking where they were. It would seem that even if there wasn't time to check where they were, they'd know where they'd just been and where they were headed when they checked.I don't know how widespread this practice was.
He also mentions 'news walkers', who would take unauthorized strolls along the lines when they were stopped long enough, to dispense and gather news.
There would be alot of variables in answering this question. I think that at times you'd know your location pretty well since you'd been there a couple of times already.