William Hewitt

History of the Twelfth West Virginia Volunteer Infantry: and the Story of Andersonville and Florence William Hewitt

Includes:
The regimental history of the 12th West Virginia Infantry, originally published in 1892
The Story of Andersonville and Florence by James N. Miller
A complete regimental roster and index

An Excerpt:

The attack on Fort Gregg, Petersburg, Virginia, April 2, 1865: ?when within 50 yards of the fort, Sergt. Emanuel M. Adams of Company D, color-bearer, fell wounded. The colors were picked up and bravely carried forward by Private Joseph R. Logsden of Company C, as the brigade charged on over the dead and wounded of the First Division. After our men had got into the ditch surrounding the fort, they remained there perhaps twenty minutes before they made an entrance. In the meantime the Rebels were throwing dirt, stones and various kinds of missiles upon them.

At length as a movement toward entering the fort, the gallant Logsden undertook to plant the flag of the Twelfth upon the parapet, and was killed, falling back into the ditch. The colors were then seized by Lieut. Joseph Caldwell of Company A, who leaped upon the parapet, and in attempting to plant the colors there was killed, falling also into the ditch. The flag fell inside of the fort. Then the brave boys of the Twelfth rushed to the parapet to recover their flag. They were joined by comrades of the rest of the brigade. Pouring a volley into the Rebels, the boys of the Twelfth leaped into the fort and planted their flag on the parapet - the first colors on the Rebel works.

Private Joseph McCauslin, Company D, and two comrades of the 12th received the Congressional Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry in the assault on Fort Gregg.