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Oliver Hazard Payne's Civil War Service
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When the Civil War began, Oliver Hazard Payne was a student
at Yale, class of 1863. He left Yale in October 1861 to join the
Union Army as a volunteer for a three year term. His family
finances would have made it simple for Oliver to avoid military
service with a compensating payment of $300, as did his later
partners John D. Rockefeller and Henry Flagler. But Oliver came
from a family with a proud military background; his mother was
a Perry. He was named for Oliver Hazard Perry, the victor of the
battle of Lake Erie in 1812. This hero's brother, Commodore
Matthew Perry, was instrumental in opening up Japan to
commerce with the United States (1954-1958). Additionally,
Ohio strongly supported the Union cause. The settlers were
mainly of yeoman type, and strongly disapproved of slavery.
Ohio had a history of being the leading route of the
Underground Railroad . Oliver's father had secured a First
Lieutenant position for him in the First Battalion of Yates, Illinois
Sharpshooters.
In the organization of the Civil War armies, the basic unit was
the regiment, commanded by a colonel, with an authorized
strength of about a thousand men, divided into ten companies,
each officered by a captain and two lieutenants. Regiments
were themselves organized into larger units-- in ascending
order, brigades, divisions, corps and armies, each commanded
by a brigadier or major-general. Union armies were normally
named after rivers in their areas of their command -- for
example the Army of the Potomac or the group to which the
124th Ohio Infantry was assigned: the Army of the
Cumberland. A fairly typical arrangement would have been five
regiments to a brigade, three brigades to a division, three
divisions to a corps, two, three, four or more corps to an army.
As the war progressed these numbers dwindled through
casualties and desertion, as there was not system of
replenishment of individual soldiers.
While Payne was with the First Battalion of Yates, Illinois
Sharpshooters, there is little mention of him in the official
records, as citations in these documents did not reach below
the Colonel level. It is known that he participated in the
engagements of New Madrid & Island No 10 in Missouri, and
Farmington, Boonesville and Corinth in Mississippi..
New Madrid -- 13 March 1862 under General Pope
Island
#
10 -- 8 April 1862 under General Pope
Farmington south of Corinth
engagement May 9, 1862 -- I 10,52
skirmishes May 3,10,12, 19,22 -- I, 10
Boonesville south of Farmingham, 20 miles south of Corinth, 30
north of Tupelo
Expeditions May 30, 1862
I 10,17
March - April 1, 1862 I 24
Skirmishes May 29, 1862 --
I, 10
June 11, 1862 I 17
Action July 1, 1862 -- I 16,17
Iuka on 19 September 1862
Corinth on 3-4 October 1862
Near the end of 1862, the 124th Ohio Volunteer Army was
organized. In September 1862 Payne became a lieutenant
colonel in the 124th, and was promoted to colonel in January
1863. From all written reports, he served with distinction. At
war's end he won the brevet of brigadier general. Brevet was
an honor which did not change pay or responsibilities;
essentially it was a reward. During his life, Payne preferred the
title Colonel.
The first half of 1963 was taken up with organizing the
regiment. At the commencement of the war, there were only
400 officers with military training (meaning West Point) in the
Union group, with about 300 with similar training in the Rebel
army. The Union tended to keep these officers together in the
same army, so most of the regiments were volunteers led by
volunteers. In Payne's case, he at least had some prior battle
experience with the First Illinois.
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Strategy.
West Point academics were not strong on strategy
which could be applied to a war as extensive as the Civil War.
At the beginning of the Civil War, the North held the simplistic
notion that a single victory would convince the South to
concede; the Southern strategy was to convince the North that
it could not win militarily. After the battle of Bull Run, the
North developed a longer range strategy. The warring groups
had the Appalachian mountain range as a dividing spine running
north to south. The North decided to secure control of the
Mississippi, which would separate the western rebellious states
from the eastern, and then to split the confederacy from north
to south by moving towards Chattanooga and from there either
eastward towards Savannah and the Atlantic or southward
towards Mobile and the Caribbean. The South continued its
program of trying to convince the North that it could not win;
General Lee added the possibility of an invasion of the North to
show that no place was secure, but this ended at Gettysburg.
Many Rebel soldiers refused to fight outside the Confederate
States.
Tactics. Both Confederate and Union West Point alumni had
been exposed to the writings of Henri Jomini, the military
theorist of the Napoleonic age, whose Precis de /'art de guerre
was the sacred text on the subject. This text was used for
many years, to be replaced by future General Halleck's
Elements of Military Art and Science in 1846, practically a literal
translation. Jominian principles survived the discontinuance of
the textbook, in the teaching of Mahan and other professors at
West Point. Jomini urged the importance of concentration at
the decisive point, stressed the advantages of the offensive
and belittled the need for fortifications. He gave high priority to
the occupation of enemy territory and capture of the enemy
capital. With every passing month, the gap between Jominian
theories and the Civil War realities grew wider.
The war
taught the advantage of the defensive side of the field of
battle. Defenders overcame their traditional contempt for
trenches and earthworks to such an extent that the space
became the infantryman's best friend.
For both attackers and defenders, the organization of troops
was similar. Most of the brigade was arranged in two straight
lines, one perhaps 100 yards behind the other. A smaller
number of troopers, called skirmishers, were deployed in front
of the first line. These were used as scouts and probes, to
determine the enemy's position and report back to the
commanding officers. The battle lines were held close together
so that the officers could control the action immediately on the
scene. Persistence in the old infantry tactics of advancing in
close formation, joined with the use of the rifled musket, led to
the piles of Union and Confederate dead at famous battles. For
our purpose, it helps us understand that Colonel Payne was
with, immediately behind, or even in front of his regiment
during battle.
The Yates Illinois Sharpshooters (64th regiment) saw action
under General Pope, and were most often used as skirmishers,
or front line scouts, to engage the enemy and locate the enemy
positions. Payne's time with Yates introduced him to the tactics
and the horrors of the war which would touch him more closely
when he moved to the 124th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. His
promotion to first lieutenant and then captain indicates that his
performance with Yates was admired by both his superiors and
the men he led.
In early 1963, Payne worked to train the newly formed 124th
Ohio, and save for a small battle in March, the group saw little
action until it reached Chattanooga
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Chickamauga is in the extreme northwest section of Georgia,
less than 10 miles south of Chattanooga,
Tennessee. Chattanooga was the main target, standing on the
Tennessee River where it carved a gap through the formidable
mountain barrier. Its capture would finally break that barrier,
deliver one more blow at the east-west communications of the
Confederacy, open the way into Georgia, and encourage the
Unionists of eastern Tennessee. As the Union forces
approached, Confederate General Bragg left Chattanooga and
retired towards Chickamauga Creek. The battle of Chickamauga
on 19-20 September 1863 was one of those chaotic, scrappy,
disjointed (but non the less savage) Civil War encounters, in
tangled, difficult country, in which the army commanders, and
even corps and divisions commanders, often lost their grip on
exactly what their men were doing or how they were fighting .
. . . Chickamauga was among the bloodiest of Civil War battles,
and the Confederates lost the greater numbers: 18,400 to
16,100 . " --( Peter Parish, p. 297)
The outcome was a defeat for the Union forces, but Union
General Thomas earned the nickname "The Rock of
Chickamauga" for his heroic defense of his position on
September 20. Oliver Payne fought under the Thomas group,
and was seriously wounded on September 19. Thus he missed
the Battle of Chattanooga, after which both armies settled into
a winter stay. He rejoined his regiment in early 1964, and
participated in the campaign led by Sherman against Johnston
and then Hood on the 100 mile stretch between Chattanooga
and Atlanta.
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Revised strategy. By 1964 General Grant had concluded that
occupation of territory was not as important as defeating the
enemy armies, particularly since the Union had a great
advantage in numbers. For his part, Sherman convinced Grant
that the best way to defend vulnerable communication was to
abandon them altogether. He was convinced that the best way
for the North to win the war was to convince the people of the
South that they could not win. "If we can march a well-
appointed army right through his territory, it is a demonstration
that we have a power which Davis cannot resist. This may not
be war but rather statesmanship. " Sherman's blend of
imagination and tough-minded realism had carried him beyond
Grant's thinking to the point where it was as important to break
the civilian will to fight as the military capacity to fight.
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Chickamauga
is in the extreme northwest section of Georgia, less than
10 miles south of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Chattanooga was the main
target, standing on the Tennessee River where it carved a gap through
the formidable mountain barrier. Its capture would finally break that
barrier, deliver one more blow at the east-west communications of the
Confederacy, open the way into Georgia, and encourage the Unionists of
eastern Tennessee. As the Union forces approached, Confederate
General Bragg left Chattanooga and retired towards Chickamauga
Creek. The battle of Chickamauga on 19-20 September 1863 was one of
those chaotic, scrappy, disjointed (but non the less savage) Civil War
encounters, in tangled, difficult country, in which the army commanders,
and even corps and divisions commanders, often lost their grip on
exactly what their men were doing or how they were fighting ....
Chickamauga was among the bloodiest of Civil War battles, and the
Confederates lost the greater numbers: 18,400 to 16,100 . " --( Peter
Parish, p. 297)
The outcome was a defeat for the Union forces, but Union General
Thomas earned the nickname "The Rock of Chickamauga" for his heroic
defense of his position on September 20. Oliver Payne fought under the
Thomas group, and was seriously wounded on September 19. Thus he
missed the Battle of Chattanooga, after which both armies settled into a
winter stay. He rejoined his regiment in early 1964, and participated in
the campaign led by Sherman against Johnston and then Hood on the
100 mile stretch between Chattanooga and Atlanta.
return to
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or
Oliver H PaY-ne P-agg
or to
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Revised strategy. By 1964 General Grant had concluded that
occupation of territory was not as important as defeating the
enemy armies, particularly since the Union had a great
advantage in numbers. For his part, Sherman convinced Grant
that the best way to defend vulnerable communication was to
abandon them altogether. He was convinced that the best way
for the North to win the war was to convince the people of the
South that they could not win. "If we can march a well-
appointed army right through his territory, it is a demonstration
that we have a power which Davis cannot resist. This may not
be war but rather statesmanship. " Sherman's blend of
imagination and tough-minded realism had carried him beyond
Grant's thinking to the point where it was as important to break
the civilian will to fight as the military capacity to fight.
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or
Oliver H PaY-ne P-agg
or to
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Chattanooga to Atlanta. General Grant had been moved to
Washington, leaving the Chattanooga group in the command of
Sherman. When Sherman's campaign began in early May, his
orders were to break up Johnston's army, penetrate into the
interior of the Confederacy, and damage its war-making
capacity. Atlanta was some eighty miles from his starting-point
of Chattanooga, across difficult, rugged hill country, with ridge
after ridge offering natural defensive strongholds to his
Confederate opponents. Their commander, Joseph E. Johnston,
thought in terms of a campaign of flexible defensive maneuver,
moving back from one position to the next, drawing Sherman
deeper into difficulty and danger, and preparing to strike back
when Sherman made a false move or was betrayed into a rash,
frontal assault. Sherman had a healthy respect for Johnston's
strategy and realized only too well that every step forward
would increase his supply problems; he would have to commit
more of his own men to defense of the railroad which was his
lifeline. Sherman's solid core was the Army of the Cumberland,
led by General Thomas, with two smaller components, the
Armies of the Tennessee and of the Ohio.
When he moved against Johnston's army early in May 1864, he
had no intention of making a direct challenge to the impressive
Confederate position on Rocky Face Ridge; instead Thomas was
merely to demonstrate against that position, while the other
groups moved round its flanks. This led do a series of flanking
movements with occasional battles, at Resaca, Snake Creek
Gap, Cassville, Allatoona Pass and New Hope Church. This
brought Sherman to Marietta and the siege of Atlanta began.
Johnston had been replaced by Hood, who eventually
abandoned Atlanta and led his troops toward Decatur with the
intention to move on Nashville. During the siege, the 124th
was stationed at Jonesboro, south of Atlanta.
After Sherman took Atlanta, he decided to move to either
Mobile or Savannah. He developed what is now considered the
"total war" concept. Believing that the war would not be won
without demonstrating to the people who supported the
Confederate Army their indirect responsibility, he kept about
60,000 battle-tested troops, sending the others back towards
Chattanooga under General Thomas. The 124th Ohio went
back with Thomas. Sherman sent the bulk of his supplies back
to Chattanooga in early November, and burned the warehouses
of Atlanta on 15 November. His army marched out of Atlanta
on 15-16 November in four columns, which spread out over a
front twenty miles of more in width. The army traveled light,
living off the land, and burning or destroying any food or
supplies in its wake. He received only cursory opposition, as
Confederate General Hood had moved westward towards
Decatur with the plan to attack Nashville and then perhaps join
Lee for one final glorious battle. Sherman's army took
Savannah on 21 December, and by cable he presented the city
to Lincoln on 24 December as a Christmas gift.
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When the 124th reached Rossville near Chattanooga, Payne told
his fellow officers that he would be resigning, which he which he
did on 2 November 1864. "I remember the last day our Colonel
Payne was with us, near Rossville. He said to me 'We can never
conquer the south, and if we do children yet unborn will fight in
this war"' ( quote from an officer who served under Payne.) The
speaker opined that Payne was discouraged at being returned
towards Chattanooga. However, Payne's three-year enlistment
was up, and Payne thought that he had done enough for the
war. The cited officer agreed, noting that Payne had nearly died
at Ch icka ma uga.
The 124th moved from Chattanooga towards Nashville, where it
experienced its last engagement on December 15-16, 1864. En
route, it fought the Confederates at Brown's Ferry, Tennessee
on October 27, 1864 and Franklin, Tennessee on November 30,
1864.
Payne's cousin, Lieutenant Samuel B Payne of Company C of
the 124th was killed in battle before Nashville on 16
December. Colonel Payne brought his body to Dayton for
burial.
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Quotations from Lewis, Campaigns of 124th Regiment:
"On January 1, 1863, our regiment was furnished transportation toward
the seat of war "
14 May 1864 - Resaca "In this charge our young Colonel Payne, then in
command of the regiment, just being returned recovered from a very
dangerous wound received at Chickamauga that nearly cost him his life,
showed consummate bravery, riding his horse in the charge across an
open field in a perfect storm of bullets"
"our regiment lost quite
severely"
Pumpkinvine creek -- "Colonel Payne sent me an order to force the
skirmish line well to the front and word was sent back that we were
fighting the main line of the enemy not one hundred feet away"
New Hope Church -- "It was now quite dark and the firing had ceased all
along the line. The few men that came out of the battle together
gathered around Colonel Payne. "
Picketts Mills -- "I was up to my neck in Picket's mill pond ... this battle
under the different names of Picket's Mills, Pumpkinvine creek and New
Hope Church, was the last engagement in which our brigade took part on
the rebel position known as Dallas ... the brigade lost 500 men ... our
regiment lost very heavily in officers and men."
"I remember the last day our Colonel Payne was with us near Rossville.
He said to me 'We can never conquer the south, and if we do children
yet unborn will fight in this war."
Samuel Brooks Payne (b 1 Jan 1843 at Seneca Falls, killed in battle
before Nashville 16 Dec 1864) "Samuel was a 'squirrel hunter' from Ohio
who received a commission as 2nd Lieutenant in the regiment
commanded by his cousin, Colonel Oliver H Payne of Cleveland, the
124th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was sent to Tennessee during the
severe winter of 1862-1863 with a squad of men. They suffered severely
with cold and from smallpox breaking out among them. Mr. Payne
served two years and was promoted to a first lieutenancy. When killed,
he was gallantly leading his men in the last charge at Nashville. His body
was brought to Dayton for burial by Colonel Oliver Payne.
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From communiques listed in the Official Record of the War of the
Rebellion:
v 20, p 289
organization of the Department of the Ohio at
December 1862
!
Department of the Ohio
I
I
Maj Gen H G Wright
I
District of Western
Kentucky at Henderson, Brig Gen J T Boyle
Kentucky
1
124th Ohio
I
I
Col O H Payne
I
v 23, p 78 Franklin, Tenn, March 3, 1863 - "Special orders from George
K Speed. Colonel Payne, one hundred and twenty-fourth Ohio, with his
regiment, will report to Colonel Coburn to accompany this command ...
proceed along the Columbia pike as far as Spring Hill, send out a party
toward Columbia and one to Raleigh Springs, where a cavalry force from
Murfreesborough will communicate with it on the ensuing day.
v. 23 p 105 "By order of Col.
0
H Payne, commanding the brigade to
which my regiment is attached, I report to you with my regiment, about
400 strong"
v 23, p 415 & vol 30, p 44
Organization of the Army of the Cumberland at the
battle of Chickamauga, September 19 & 20, 1863
rrmy
of the Cumberland
I
Maj Gen William S
Rosencrans
Twenty First Army Corps
Maj Gen Thomas
Crittenden
!
second Division
I
I
Maj Gen John M Palmer
I
!
second brigade
I
I
Brig Gen William Hazen
I
124th Ohio Volunteer
Infantry
Colonel Oliver H Payne;
Major James B Hampson
v 23, p 530 Brig Gen W B Hazen report July 10, 1863 from Manchester
Tenn. "left Readyville, where they had been camped since Jan
10 ... reached Bradyville at 2 pm ... column from Cripple Creek arrived
same time ... next day to Hollow springs at foot of hills known as 'the
Barrens' ... next day marched forward within 4 miles of Manchester"
v 30, p 763 "The 124th Ohio Volunteer, though in its maiden
engagement bore itself gallantly and efficiently"
Report of Brig. Gen. William B. Hazen of operations May 3 - August 17,
1864
near Resaca "Colonel Payne, One hundred and twenty-fourth Ohio
Volunteers, commanding his own regiment and the Ninety-third
Volunteers, pushed forward, vigorously driving the enemy from their
advanced position, and seizing a hill within 100 yards of a salient in his
works, containing a battery and overlooking a portion of his line
containing two other batteries ... and the guns were kept silent the
remainder of the time he occupied this position."
"the entire fire of the enemy was concentrated upon my command, which
was staggered, and as I could see no support ordered them back. The
losses of the brigade in this unassisted and honest effort in the space of
thirty seconds was 120"
"I would call attention to ... the meritorious conduct of Colonel Payne in
seizing the position already occupied by the enemy.
near Dallas "The first line was composed of two battalions; the one on
the left commanded by Col.
0.
H. Payne, One hundred and twenty-fourth
Ohio Volunteers, composed of his own regiment and the Ninety-third
Ohio Volunteers ... The whole, under my own personal supervision,
moved up within ten yards of the position in which the enemy was found
in force. A slight irregularity in the ground gave a partial cover for our
men. ... My command had now lost 500 men in the attack and was
powerless to push farther, although the enemy himself was partially
broken."
"Colonel Payne, with a portion of his command, held his position, quite at
the front, until after dark, when they were withdrawn. It is due the brave
brigade which I have commanded during the entire war until within the
past few days, and which has been in the front of every battle of the Army
of the Cumberland, to say that this battle of the 27th of May is its first and
only unsuccessful effort during the war .... I shall ever believe its part
bravely and well done. To Colonels Berry and Payne and Lieutenant-
Colonels Kimberly and Foy, since killed, and their brave commands my
sincere thanks are due."
"On the 17th of August, I turned the command of the brigade over to Col.
0.
H. Payne ... Colonels Payne, Berry, and Lieutenant-Colonel Kimberly
have at all times shown such intelligence and zeal in the execution of
duty as to deserve the highest consideration of the Government. ... I am,
very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. B. HAZEN, Brigadier-
General."
Battles listed in official history of 124th Ohio
Regiment
Thompson's Station,
!
March 4-5, 1863
Tennessee
!
Chickamauga, Georgia
l
l
september 19-20, 1863
Lookout Mountain,
!
November 24, 1863
Tennessee
!
Mission Ridge, Tennessee
II
November 25, 1863
Rocky Face Ridge,
!
May 5- 9, 1864
Georgia
!
Resaca, Georgia
I
I
May 12-16, 1864
!
Pickett's Mills, Georgia
I
I
May 27, 1864
!
Brown's Ferry, Tennessee
l
l
october 27, 1864
!
Franklin, Tennessee
II
November 30, 1864
!
Nashville, Tennessee
II
December 15-16, 1864
Sources:
George W Lewis, The CamQaigns of the 124th Regiment, Ohio
Volunteer Infantry,_ 1912 (Available in New York Public Library)
T. Harry Williams, The HistorY. of American Wars from colonial
times to World War I, from 1745 to 1918,_ New YOrk, Alfred A
Knopf, 1981, .435 pp (available in Chappaqua library)
Henry Steele Commager, The Blue and the Gray, 2 vols,
Indianapolis & New York, The Bobbs-Merril Company, Inc.,
1950 (available in Chappaqua library)
Peter J. Parish, The American Civil War, New York, Holmes &
Meier Publishers, Inc, 1975, 750 pp. (available in Chappaqua
library)
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For further research:
Information about New Madrid & Island No 10
Determine whether Yates Sharpshooters participated in Iuka battle
Discover nature of Payne's injuries
Did Payne participate in battle of Brown's Ferry?
original version November 2001
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When the Civil War began, Oliver Hazard Payne was a student
at Yale, class of 1863. He left Yale in October 1861 to join the
Union Army as a volunteer for a three year term. His family
finances would have made it simple for Oliver to avoid military
service with a compensating payment of $300, as did his later
partners John D. Rockefeller and Henry Flagler. But Oliver came
from a family with a proud military background; his mother was
a Perry. He was named for Oliver Hazard Perry, the victor of the
battle of Lake Erie in 1812. This hero's brother, Commodore
Matthew Perry, was instrumental in opening up Japan to
commerce with the United States (1954-1958). Additionally,
Ohio strongly supported the Union cause. The settlers were
mainly of yeoman type, and strongly disapproved of slavery.
Ohio had a history of being the leading route of the
Underground Railroad . Oliver's father had secured a First
Lieutenant position for him in the First Battalion of Yates, Illinois
Sharpshooters.
In the organization of the Civil War armies, the basic unit was
the regiment, commanded by a colonel, with an authorized
strength of about a thousand men, divided into ten companies,
each officered by a captain and two lieutenants. Regiments
were themselves organized into larger units-- in ascending
order, brigades, divisions, corps and armies, each commanded
by a brigadier or major-general. Union armies were normally
named after rivers in their areas of their command -- for
example the Army of the Potomac or the group to which the
124th Ohio Infantry was assigned: the Army of the
Cumberland. A fairly typical arrangement would have been five
regiments to a brigade, three brigades to a division, three
divisions to a corps, two, three, four or more corps to an army.
As the war progressed these numbers dwindled through
casualties and desertion, as there was not system of
replenishment of individual soldiers.
While Payne was with the First Battalion of Yates, Illinois
Sharpshooters, there is little mention of him in the official
records, as citations in these documents did not reach below
the Colonel level. It is known that he participated in the
engagements of New Madrid & Island No 10 in Missouri, and
Farmington, Boonesville and Corinth in Mississippi..
New Madrid -- 13 March 1862 under General Pope
Island
#
10 -- 8 April 1862 under General Pope
Farmington south of Corinth
engagement May 9, 1862 -- I 10,52
skirmishes May 3,10,12, 19,22 -- I, 10
Boonesville south of Farmingham, 20 miles south of Corinth, 30
north of Tupelo
Expeditions May 30, 1862
I 10,17
March - April 1, 1862 I 24
Skirmishes May 29, 1862 --
I, 10
June 11, 1862 I 17
Action July 1, 1862 -- I 16,17
Iuka on 19 September 1862
Corinth on 3-4 October 1862
Near the end of 1862, the 124th Ohio Volunteer Army was
organized. In September 1862 Payne became a lieutenant
colonel in the 124th, and was promoted to colonel in January
1863. From all written reports, he served with distinction. At
war's end he won the brevet of brigadier general. Brevet was
an honor which did not change pay or responsibilities;
essentially it was a reward. During his life, Payne preferred the
title Colonel.
The first half of 1963 was taken up with organizing the
regiment. At the commencement of the war, there were only
400 officers with military training (meaning West Point) in the
Union group, with about 300 with similar training in the Rebel
army. The Union tended to keep these officers together in the
same army, so most of the regiments were volunteers led by
volunteers. In Payne's case, he at least had some prior battle
experience with the First Illinois.
return to
toP- of P-ag.e
or
Oliver H Pay:ne P-ag.e
or to
home P-ag.e
Strategy.
West Point academics were not strong on strategy
which could be applied to a war as extensive as the Civil War.
At the beginning of the Civil War, the North held the simplistic
notion that a single victory would convince the South to
concede; the Southern strategy was to convince the North that
it could not win militarily. After the battle of Bull Run, the
North developed a longer range strategy. The warring groups
had the Appalachian mountain range as a dividing spine running
north to south. The North decided to secure control of the
Mississippi, which would separate the western rebellious states
from the eastern, and then to split the confederacy from north
to south by moving towards Chattanooga and from there either
eastward towards Savannah and the Atlantic or southward
towards Mobile and the Caribbean. The South continued its
program of trying to convince the North that it could not win;
General Lee added the possibility of an invasion of the North to
show that no place was secure, but this ended at Gettysburg.
Many Rebel soldiers refused to fight outside the Confederate
States.
Tactics. Both Confederate and Union West Point alumni had
been exposed to the writings of Henri Jomini, the military
theorist of the Napoleonic age, whose Precis de /'art de guerre
was the sacred text on the subject. This text was used for
many years, to be replaced by future General Halleck's
Elements of Military Art and Science in 1846, practically a literal
translation. Jominian principles survived the discontinuance of
the textbook, in the teaching of Mahan and other professors at
West Point. Jomini urged the importance of concentration at
the decisive point, stressed the advantages of the offensive
and belittled the need for fortifications. He gave high priority to
the occupation of enemy territory and capture of the enemy
capital. With every passing month, the gap between Jominian
theories and the Civil War realities grew wider.
The war
taught the advantage of the defensive side of the field of
battle. Defenders overcame their traditional contempt for
trenches and earthworks to such an extent that the space
became the infantryman's best friend.
For both attackers and defenders, the organization of troops
was similar. Most of the brigade was arranged in two straight
lines, one perhaps 100 yards behind the other. A smaller
number of troopers, called skirmishers, were deployed in front
of the first line. These were used as scouts and probes, to
determine the enemy's position and report back to the
commanding officers. The battle lines were held close together
so that the officers could control the action immediately on the
scene. Persistence in the old infantry tactics of advancing in
close formation, joined with the use of the rifled musket, led to
the piles of Union and Confederate dead at famous battles. For
our purpose, it helps us understand that Colonel Payne was
with, immediately behind, or even in front of his regiment
during battle.
The Yates Illinois Sharpshooters (64th regiment) saw action
under General Pope, and were most often used as skirmishers,
or front line scouts, to engage the enemy and locate the enemy
positions. Payne's time with Yates introduced him to the tactics
and the horrors of the war which would touch him more closely
when he moved to the 124th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. His
promotion to first lieutenant and then captain indicates that his
performance with Yates was admired by both his superiors and
the men he led.
In early 1963, Payne worked to train the newly formed 124th
Ohio, and save for a small battle in March, the group saw little
action until it reached Chattanooga
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Chickamauga is in the extreme northwest section of Georgia,
less than 10 miles south of Chattanooga,
Tennessee. Chattanooga was the main target, standing on the
Tennessee River where it carved a gap through the formidable
mountain barrier. Its capture would finally break that barrier,
deliver one more blow at the east-west communications of the
Confederacy, open the way into Georgia, and encourage the
Unionists of eastern Tennessee. As the Union forces
approached, Confederate General Bragg left Chattanooga and
retired towards Chickamauga Creek. The battle of Chickamauga
on 19-20 September 1863 was one of those chaotic, scrappy,
disjointed (but non the less savage) Civil War encounters, in
tangled, difficult country, in which the army commanders, and
even corps and divisions commanders, often lost their grip on
exactly what their men were doing or how they were fighting .
. . . Chickamauga was among the bloodiest of Civil War battles,
and the Confederates lost the greater numbers: 18,400 to
16,100 . " --( Peter Parish, p. 297)
The outcome was a defeat for the Union forces, but Union
General Thomas earned the nickname "The Rock of
Chickamauga" for his heroic defense of his position on
September 20. Oliver Payne fought under the Thomas group,
and was seriously wounded on September 19. Thus he missed
the Battle of Chattanooga, after which both armies settled into
a winter stay. He rejoined his regiment in early 1964, and
participated in the campaign led by Sherman against Johnston
and then Hood on the 100 mile stretch between Chattanooga
and Atlanta.
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Revised strategy. By 1964 General Grant had concluded that
occupation of territory was not as important as defeating the
enemy armies, particularly since the Union had a great
advantage in numbers. For his part, Sherman convinced Grant
that the best way to defend vulnerable communication was to
abandon them altogether. He was convinced that the best way
for the North to win the war was to convince the people of the
South that they could not win. "If we can march a well-
appointed army right through his territory, it is a demonstration
that we have a power which Davis cannot resist. This may not
be war but rather statesmanship. " Sherman's blend of
imagination and tough-minded realism had carried him beyond
Grant's thinking to the point where it was as important to break
the civilian will to fight as the military capacity to fight.
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Chickamauga
is in the extreme northwest section of Georgia, less than
10 miles south of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Chattanooga was the main
target, standing on the Tennessee River where it carved a gap through
the formidable mountain barrier. Its capture would finally break that
barrier, deliver one more blow at the east-west communications of the
Confederacy, open the way into Georgia, and encourage the Unionists of
eastern Tennessee. As the Union forces approached, Confederate
General Bragg left Chattanooga and retired towards Chickamauga
Creek. The battle of Chickamauga on 19-20 September 1863 was one of
those chaotic, scrappy, disjointed (but non the less savage) Civil War
encounters, in tangled, difficult country, in which the army commanders,
and even corps and divisions commanders, often lost their grip on
exactly what their men were doing or how they were fighting ....
Chickamauga was among the bloodiest of Civil War battles, and the
Confederates lost the greater numbers: 18,400 to 16,100 . " --( Peter
Parish, p. 297)
The outcome was a defeat for the Union forces, but Union General
Thomas earned the nickname "The Rock of Chickamauga" for his heroic
defense of his position on September 20. Oliver Payne fought under the
Thomas group, and was seriously wounded on September 19. Thus he
missed the Battle of Chattanooga, after which both armies settled into a
winter stay. He rejoined his regiment in early 1964, and participated in
the campaign led by Sherman against Johnston and then Hood on the
100 mile stretch between Chattanooga and Atlanta.
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Revised strategy. By 1964 General Grant had concluded that
occupation of territory was not as important as defeating the
enemy armies, particularly since the Union had a great
advantage in numbers. For his part, Sherman convinced Grant
that the best way to defend vulnerable communication was to
abandon them altogether. He was convinced that the best way
for the North to win the war was to convince the people of the
South that they could not win. "If we can march a well-
appointed army right through his territory, it is a demonstration
that we have a power which Davis cannot resist. This may not
be war but rather statesmanship. " Sherman's blend of
imagination and tough-minded realism had carried him beyond
Grant's thinking to the point where it was as important to break
the civilian will to fight as the military capacity to fight.
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Chattanooga to Atlanta. General Grant had been moved to
Washington, leaving the Chattanooga group in the command of
Sherman. When Sherman's campaign began in early May, his
orders were to break up Johnston's army, penetrate into the
interior of the Confederacy, and damage its war-making
capacity. Atlanta was some eighty miles from his starting-point
of Chattanooga, across difficult, rugged hill country, with ridge
after ridge offering natural defensive strongholds to his
Confederate opponents. Their commander, Joseph E. Johnston,
thought in terms of a campaign of flexible defensive maneuver,
moving back from one position to the next, drawing Sherman
deeper into difficulty and danger, and preparing to strike back
when Sherman made a false move or was betrayed into a rash,
frontal assault. Sherman had a healthy respect for Johnston's
strategy and realized only too well that every step forward
would increase his supply problems; he would have to commit
more of his own men to defense of the railroad which was his
lifeline. Sherman's solid core was the Army of the Cumberland,
led by General Thomas, with two smaller components, the
Armies of the Tennessee and of the Ohio.
When he moved against Johnston's army early in May 1864, he
had no intention of making a direct challenge to the impressive
Confederate position on Rocky Face Ridge; instead Thomas was
merely to demonstrate against that position, while the other
groups moved round its flanks. This led do a series of flanking
movements with occasional battles, at Resaca, Snake Creek
Gap, Cassville, Allatoona Pass and New Hope Church. This
brought Sherman to Marietta and the siege of Atlanta began.
Johnston had been replaced by Hood, who eventually
abandoned Atlanta and led his troops toward Decatur with the
intention to move on Nashville. During the siege, the 124th
was stationed at Jonesboro, south of Atlanta.
After Sherman took Atlanta, he decided to move to either
Mobile or Savannah. He developed what is now considered the
"total war" concept. Believing that the war would not be won
without demonstrating to the people who supported the
Confederate Army their indirect responsibility, he kept about
60,000 battle-tested troops, sending the others back towards
Chattanooga under General Thomas. The 124th Ohio went
back with Thomas. Sherman sent the bulk of his supplies back
to Chattanooga in early November, and burned the warehouses
of Atlanta on 15 November. His army marched out of Atlanta
on 15-16 November in four columns, which spread out over a
front twenty miles of more in width. The army traveled light,
living off the land, and burning or destroying any food or
supplies in its wake. He received only cursory opposition, as
Confederate General Hood had moved westward towards
Decatur with the plan to attack Nashville and then perhaps join
Lee for one final glorious battle. Sherman's army took
Savannah on 21 December, and by cable he presented the city
to Lincoln on 24 December as a Christmas gift.
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When the 124th reached Rossville near Chattanooga, Payne told
his fellow officers that he would be resigning, which he which he
did on 2 November 1864. "I remember the last day our Colonel
Payne was with us, near Rossville. He said to me 'We can never
conquer the south, and if we do children yet unborn will fight in
this war"' ( quote from an officer who served under Payne.) The
speaker opined that Payne was discouraged at being returned
towards Chattanooga. However, Payne's three-year enlistment
was up, and Payne thought that he had done enough for the
war. The cited officer agreed, noting that Payne had nearly died
at Ch icka ma uga.
The 124th moved from Chattanooga towards Nashville, where it
experienced its last engagement on December 15-16, 1864. En
route, it fought the Confederates at Brown's Ferry, Tennessee
on October 27, 1864 and Franklin, Tennessee on November 30,
1864.
Payne's cousin, Lieutenant Samuel B Payne of Company C of
the 124th was killed in battle before Nashville on 16
December. Colonel Payne brought his body to Dayton for
burial.
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Quotations from Lewis, Campaigns of 124th Regiment:
"On January 1, 1863, our regiment was furnished transportation toward
the seat of war "
14 May 1864 - Resaca "In this charge our young Colonel Payne, then in
command of the regiment, just being returned recovered from a very
dangerous wound received at Chickamauga that nearly cost him his life,
showed consummate bravery, riding his horse in the charge across an
open field in a perfect storm of bullets"
"our regiment lost quite
severely"
Pumpkinvine creek -- "Colonel Payne sent me an order to force the
skirmish line well to the front and word was sent back that we were
fighting the main line of the enemy not one hundred feet away"
New Hope Church -- "It was now quite dark and the firing had ceased all
along the line. The few men that came out of the battle together
gathered around Colonel Payne. "
Picketts Mills -- "I was up to my neck in Picket's mill pond ... this battle
under the different names of Picket's Mills, Pumpkinvine creek and New
Hope Church, was the last engagement in which our brigade took part on
the rebel position known as Dallas ... the brigade lost 500 men ... our
regiment lost very heavily in officers and men."
"I remember the last day our Colonel Payne was with us near Rossville.
He said to me 'We can never conquer the south, and if we do children
yet unborn will fight in this war."
Samuel Brooks Payne (b 1 Jan 1843 at Seneca Falls, killed in battle
before Nashville 16 Dec 1864) "Samuel was a 'squirrel hunter' from Ohio
who received a commission as 2nd Lieutenant in the regiment
commanded by his cousin, Colonel Oliver H Payne of Cleveland, the
124th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was sent to Tennessee during the
severe winter of 1862-1863 with a squad of men. They suffered severely
with cold and from smallpox breaking out among them. Mr. Payne
served two years and was promoted to a first lieutenancy. When killed,
he was gallantly leading his men in the last charge at Nashville. His body
was brought to Dayton for burial by Colonel Oliver Payne.
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From communiques listed in the Official Record of the War of the
Rebellion:
v 20, p 289
organization of the Department of the Ohio at
December 1862
!
Department of the Ohio
I
I
Maj Gen H G Wright
I
District of Western
Kentucky at Henderson, Brig Gen J T Boyle
Kentucky
1
124th Ohio
I
I
Col O H Payne
I
v 23, p 78 Franklin, Tenn, March 3, 1863 - "Special orders from George
K Speed. Colonel Payne, one hundred and twenty-fourth Ohio, with his
regiment, will report to Colonel Coburn to accompany this command ...
proceed along the Columbia pike as far as Spring Hill, send out a party
toward Columbia and one to Raleigh Springs, where a cavalry force from
Murfreesborough will communicate with it on the ensuing day.
v. 23 p 105 "By order of Col.
0
H Payne, commanding the brigade to
which my regiment is attached, I report to you with my regiment, about
400 strong"
v 23, p 415 & vol 30, p 44
Organization of the Army of the Cumberland at the
battle of Chickamauga, September 19 & 20, 1863
rrmy
of the Cumberland
I
Maj Gen William S
Rosencrans
Twenty First Army Corps
Maj Gen Thomas
Crittenden
!
second Division
I
I
Maj Gen John M Palmer
I
!
second brigade
I
I
Brig Gen William Hazen
I
124th Ohio Volunteer
Infantry
Colonel Oliver H Payne;
Major James B Hampson
v 23, p 530 Brig Gen W B Hazen report July 10, 1863 from Manchester
Tenn. "left Readyville, where they had been camped since Jan
10 ... reached Bradyville at 2 pm ... column from Cripple Creek arrived
same time ... next day to Hollow springs at foot of hills known as 'the
Barrens' ... next day marched forward within 4 miles of Manchester"
v 30, p 763 "The 124th Ohio Volunteer, though in its maiden
engagement bore itself gallantly and efficiently"
Report of Brig. Gen. William B. Hazen of operations May 3 - August 17,
1864
near Resaca "Colonel Payne, One hundred and twenty-fourth Ohio
Volunteers, commanding his own regiment and the Ninety-third
Volunteers, pushed forward, vigorously driving the enemy from their
advanced position, and seizing a hill within 100 yards of a salient in his
works, containing a battery and overlooking a portion of his line
containing two other batteries ... and the guns were kept silent the
remainder of the time he occupied this position."
"the entire fire of the enemy was concentrated upon my command, which
was staggered, and as I could see no support ordered them back. The
losses of the brigade in this unassisted and honest effort in the space of
thirty seconds was 120"
"I would call attention to ... the meritorious conduct of Colonel Payne in
seizing the position already occupied by the enemy.
near Dallas "The first line was composed of two battalions; the one on
the left commanded by Col.
0.
H. Payne, One hundred and twenty-fourth
Ohio Volunteers, composed of his own regiment and the Ninety-third
Ohio Volunteers ... The whole, under my own personal supervision,
moved up within ten yards of the position in which the enemy was found
in force. A slight irregularity in the ground gave a partial cover for our
men. ... My command had now lost 500 men in the attack and was
powerless to push farther, although the enemy himself was partially
broken."
"Colonel Payne, with a portion of his command, held his position, quite at
the front, until after dark, when they were withdrawn. It is due the brave
brigade which I have commanded during the entire war until within the
past few days, and which has been in the front of every battle of the Army
of the Cumberland, to say that this battle of the 27th of May is its first and
only unsuccessful effort during the war .... I shall ever believe its part
bravely and well done. To Colonels Berry and Payne and Lieutenant-
Colonels Kimberly and Foy, since killed, and their brave commands my
sincere thanks are due."
"On the 17th of August, I turned the command of the brigade over to Col.
0.
H. Payne ... Colonels Payne, Berry, and Lieutenant-Colonel Kimberly
have at all times shown such intelligence and zeal in the execution of
duty as to deserve the highest consideration of the Government. ... I am,
very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. B. HAZEN, Brigadier-
General."
Battles listed in official history of 124th Ohio
Regiment
Thompson's Station,
!
March 4-5, 1863
Tennessee
!
Chickamauga, Georgia
l
l
september 19-20, 1863
Lookout Mountain,
!
November 24, 1863
Tennessee
!
Mission Ridge, Tennessee
II
November 25, 1863
Rocky Face Ridge,
!
May 5- 9, 1864
Georgia
!
Resaca, Georgia
I
I
May 12-16, 1864
!
Pickett's Mills, Georgia
I
I
May 27, 1864
!
Brown's Ferry, Tennessee
l
l
october 27, 1864
!
Franklin, Tennessee
II
November 30, 1864
!
Nashville, Tennessee
II
December 15-16, 1864
Sources:
George W Lewis, The CamQaigns of the 124th Regiment, Ohio
Volunteer Infantry,_ 1912 (Available in New York Public Library)
T. Harry Williams, The HistorY. of American Wars from colonial
times to World War I, from 1745 to 1918,_ New YOrk, Alfred A
Knopf, 1981, .435 pp (available in Chappaqua library)
Henry Steele Commager, The Blue and the Gray, 2 vols,
Indianapolis & New York, The Bobbs-Merril Company, Inc.,
1950 (available in Chappaqua library)
Peter J. Parish, The American Civil War, New York, Holmes &
Meier Publishers, Inc, 1975, 750 pp. (available in Chappaqua
library)
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For further research:
Information about New Madrid & Island No 10
Determine whether Yates Sharpshooters participated in Iuka battle
Discover nature of Payne's injuries
Did Payne participate in battle of Brown's Ferry?
original version November 2001
reformatted and revised 17 August 2010