A DICKSON COUNTY NATIVE
William H. McCauley was enlisted in the
Confederate Army on May 14, 1861 in Nashville
by Capt Will Green for a period of 12 months
and served as a Sergeant and a Captain in
Company C of the 11th Tennessee
Infantry out of Dickson County. He was
elected 1st Lieut. at the
reorganization on May 1, 1862 and promoted to
Captain on the 7th of November of
the same year. Commanded under Major General
McCowan's Division, McCauley was a 1st
Lieutenant and 23 years of age, 5 foot. 10
inches with dark hair and a fair complexion
at the time he was wounded in the side
severely during the Battle of Murfreesboro on
December 31, 1862 and captured on January 5,
1863. He was received at Camp Chase Ohio as a
prisoner of war on March 26, 1863 and
transferred to Ft. Delaware on April 10, 1863
were he joined post on the 12th of
April and was paroled on the 25th
of that month. Records show that he was
forwarded to City Point Va. for exchange on
April 29, 1863 and was received on May 1st.
The following interesting reminiscences by
Capt. McCauley is an except taken from the
Confederate Veteran in his own words
entitled:
"KINDNESS OF GEN. JEFF C. DAVIS"
In the battle of Murfreesboro, December 31,
1862, we charged the right flank of the
enemy. We surprised and routed their first
line, driving it in wild confusion for some
miles. when suddenly we encountered a new
line secreted in a cedar glade. At this point
I saw Gen. J. E.. Rains fall from his horse,
mortally wounded , and as I turned to tell
one of my men that Gen. Rains had fallen a
Minnie ball penetrated three of my ribs and
paralyzed my right leg. I was carried to the
field hospital and from there to the
residence of Mr. B. W. Henry, where I
remained undisturbed for about three weeks,
receiving the best of care and attention. My
wound was healing nicely, though I was still
confined to my bed when a Federal officer
with six guards came into my room and said he
had orders from Gen. Jeff C. Davis to take me
to his headquarters. After walking a mile and
a half I was halted in front of Gen. Davis'
headquarters and left alone. When the General
saw me he advanced toward me, saying: Who are
you? "My name is McCauley. "What
are you, and who brought you here?"
"I am a captain in the Confederate
army." I was offering an explanation
when I saw the officer who had conveyed me
there, and pointed him out to the General.
The General called the officer to him and
asked him about the same questions he had
asked me, and then, with a closed fist and
pointed finger said: "There are some men
that do not seem to have a damn bit of sense.
I told you to go out into the country and
bring in our men that may be straggling out
from camp." The General then took me by
the arm, asked me into his marquee, and told
me to lie down on his cot. I told him that my
wound was bleeding. He then placed a camp
stool near me and asked me to sit down; which
I did with thanks, as I was feeling very weak
and sick. The staff seemed to be busy drawing
up reports and maps of the battle. The
General asked me whose brigade I was in and
on what part of the line. I told him, and
added that we surprised and routed on line of
his men, and pursued them about one and a
half miles, then encountered a second line
posted in a cedar glade, and found them very
stubborn; that at this place Gen. Rains was
killed and I was wounded. The General's face
indicated much interest, and he said: "I
placed the line in the cedars and know the
very spot on which Gen Rains fell." I
gave him all the information I could relative
to the positions occupied by the opposing
armies, and asked him to assign me to some
place to spend the night as I was very weak
and sick. He asked me where I wanted to go
and I mentioned Mr. Henry's. He gave me a
note written by himself saying: "I will
send you to the provost marshal and he will
send you where you want to go." He
directed a courier to get an ambulance but I
told him I did not want to ride as the
jarring wound tear my wound, and he said that
he had a good, old gentle horse. I thanked
him and accepted the horse. On account of the
wound in my leg I had difficulty in mounting,
seeing which the General took hold of my leg,
lifted it gently over the saddle, stepped
round to the other side of the horse, placed
my foot in the stirrup and asked how I felt.
He then gave me his hand with a fond good
bye. We soon reached the provost marshal's
office. That officer , after requiring me to
sign a parole of honor, ordered the courier
to conduct me to Mr. Henry's home. The worry
& exposure I had gone through gave me
fever, & caused my wound to inflame. At
this time Mr. Betsy Sublett, Mr. Henry's
sister, came to visit the family, & at
once took charge of me. For a few days I did
not know what was going on, but when I awoke,
I found myself encased in a wheat bran
poultice. My wound began to heal & in a
short time I was almost well. I reported to
the provost marshal at Murfreesboro, where I
found Gen G. W. Gordon. He had been wounded
and was under the care of the Misses
Dromgoole, who did so much for the
Confederate sick & wounded in the
hospitals at Murfreesboro. In a short time
the Federals made a shipment of Confederate
convalescents from the hospitals at
Murfreesboro to the penitentiary at
Nashville. I left Nashville in a few days and
went to Louisville where I met a friend who
gave me a twenty-dollar bill. This bill I
sold to a Yankee sutler at Camp Chase for
greenbacks. After being at Camp Chase for
about thirty days we took a through train to
Philadelphia. I lost my hat en route and next
day I asked the commanding officer if he
would send a guard out with me so that I
might buy a hat. He said no, but he would get
me one if I had the money to pay for it. I
gave him a five dollar greenback, all I had
left out of the twenty-dollar Tennessee bill.
The officer never came back, and I went on
from Philadelphia to Fort Delaware
bare-headed. After staying on a little island
in the Delaware bay near the Forts for about
six weeks, we took passage on a steamship
(the State of Maine) for City Point on the
James River, were exchanged, and rejoined our
commands at Shelbyville, TN the last of May
1863. I fought through the battles of
Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge,
Kennesaw Mountain, and all of Hood's and
Sherman's battles around Atlanta, GA except
one, and I never was half so mad with the
whole Federal army as I was with the officer
who stole my hat money!
11th TENNESSEE INFANTRY
REGIMENT
Organized at Camp Cheatham June 1, 1861;
Confederate service August, 1861; reorganized
May, 1862; formed Companies "F" and
"K" of the 2nd
Consolidated Tennessee Infantry Regiment
which was paroled at Greensboro, North
Carolina May 2, 1865.
FIELD OFFICERS
Colonels: James E. Rains, George W.
Gordon, James A. Long.
Lieutenant Colonels: T. P. Bateman,
Howell Webb, George W. Gordon, William R.
Thedford, James A. Long.
Majors: Hugh R. Lucas, William R.
Thedford, William Green, Philip Van Horn
Weems, John E. Binns.
Most of the companies had two different
letters, one when mustered into state
service, the other when accepted into
Confederate service. The letters shown below
are the final letters, with the original
letters indicated.
Captains: Josiah H. Pitts,
"William I. White, Co. “A",
formerly "G". Men from Humphreys
County . J. Richard McCann, Edward W. Clark,
Co. "B", formerly "F".
"The Cheatham Rifles." Men from
Davidson County . William R. Green, William
H. McCauley, Co. "C", formerly
"C". Men from Dickson County .
George Maney, James E. Rains, John E. Binns,
Co. "D", formerly "A".
"The Hermitage Guards." Men from
Davidson County . William J. Mallory, Robert
A. W. James, Co. "E", formerly
"E". Men from Dickson and Cheatham
Counties . James A. Long, James H. Darden,
Jerrie Batts, Co. "F", formerly
"D". Men from Robertson County .
Samuel C. Godshall, Edward J. Guilford, James
G. Stevens, Co. "G", formerly
"B". "The Beauregard Light
Infantry." Men from Davidson County .
Thomas P. Bateman, Philip Van Horn Weems, J.
H. Johnson, Co. "H", formerly
"I". Men from Hickman County . Hugh
R. Lucas, John D. Woodward, George W. Gordon,
Isaac P. Young, Co. “I” formerly
"K". "The Ghebers." Men
from Humphreys County . William R. Thedford,
Franklin F. Tidwell, Co. "K",
formerly "H". Men from Dickson
County
Of the field officers, Colonel Rains and
Colonel Gordon both became Brigadier
Generals. Colonel Long died September 19,
1864. Lieutenant Colonels Bateman, Webb, and
Thedford all resigned. Major Lucas failed of
re-election; Major Green died in prison; and
Major Weems was killed in July, 1864.
The 10 companies composing the regiment
were organized in their respective counties
at various times during the month of May.
They assembled at Nashville where they were
sworn into state service, and sent to Camp of
Instruction at Camp Cheatham where they were
organized into a regiment about the first of
June, 1861.
Prior to the organization of the regiment,
Captain George Maney, of the "Hermitage
Guards," was elected colonel of the 1st
Tennessee Infantry Regiment, which was
organized May 2, 1861. James E. Rains
succeeded him as captain of the company, and
then was elected colonel of the regiment.
Thus the "Hermitage Guards"
supplied colonels for two regiments, both of
whom later became brigadier generals. George
W. Gordon also became a brigadier general, so
the companies comprising the 11th
Infantry furnished three Brigadier Generals
to the Confederacy, a quite impressive
record.
In July, 1861 the regiment, with 880 men
armed with 710 flintlock muskets and 175
minie rifles, was ordered to East Tennessee
to serve in the forces commanded by Brigadier
General Felix K. Zollicoffer. They remained
in this area until the fall of 1862, when
they joined General Bragg’s Army at
Harrodsburg Kentucky. During most of this
period, the 11th was in garrison
duty at Cumberland Gap, where Colonel Rains
was in command of the garrison, along with
Churchwell’s 4th (later 34th)
Tennessee Regiment. They had skirmishes at
Wild Cat, Kentucky , (also called Rock Castle
River ), at Cumberland Gap and at Tazewell,
but were not engaged at Fishing Creek, with
Zollicoffer, nor at Perryville, with Bragg.
In March, 1862, Major General E. Kirby
Smith, who had just reached East Tennessee to
assume command, reported that the forces in
that area were in a state of chaos. He
reported Colonel Rains had 4000 men at
Cumberland Gap , but urged the appointment of
a brigadier general to help him straighten
things out. In April 1862, Brigadier General
C. L. Stevenson assumed command at Cumberland
Gap, and his brigade was listed on May 31,
1862 as composed of the 30th
Alabama Regiment, 3rd Georgia
Battalion, 42nd Georgia Regiment,
4th Confederate, 11th /
36th Tennessee Regiments,
companies from Cooke’s Regiment, (all
infantry), 3rd Tennessee Cavalry
Battalion, Eufaula (Alabama) Light Artillery,
Rhett Tennessee Artillery, and Yeizer’s
Georgia Battery ("Cherokee
Artillery"). On June 30, 1862; the 36th
Tennessee , Cooke’s two companies, and the
Rhett Artillery were gone.
On July 3,1862, Stevenson was in command
of a division, and Colonel James E. Rains of
a brigade, consisting of 4th
Confederate, 11th Tennessee
Regiment, 42nd Georgia Regiment, 3rd
Georgia Battalion, 29th North
Carolina Regiment (all infantry) and
Yeizer’s Battery.
During this period some changes had taken
place in the field officers of the 11th
Tennessee . In April, 1862, Lieutenant
Colonel Bate man resigned and Howell Webb
succeeded him. At the reorganization in May,
1862, J. E. Rains was re-elected colonel, G.
W. Gordon Lieutenant Colonel, and William
Thedford Major. In November, 1862, Rains was
promoted to Brigadier General in command of
the same brigade, except that the Eufaula
Artillery had replaced Yeizer’s Artillery.
Lieutenant Colonel Gordon succeeded him as
Colonel of the 11th, William
Thedford became Lieutenant Colonel, and
William Green Major.
In December, 1862, the brigade was
transferred from Stevenson’s Division to
that of Major General J. P. McCown, and as
part of his division fought in the Battle of
Murfreesboro, December 31, 1862. Rains’
Brigade in this battle was composed of the 3rd
Georgia Battalion, 9th Georgia
Battalion, 29th North Carolina and
11th Tennessee Infantry Regiments,
and the Eufaula Light Artillery. The 11th
suffered 83 casualties, including Colonel
Gordon, who was wounded. General Rains was
killed and Colonel Robert B. Vance took
command of the brigade.
On January 21, 1863, the 11th
was transferred from Vance’s Brigade,
McCown’s Division, to Brigadier General
Preston Smith’s Brigade, Cheatham’s
Division. On April 1, 1863 Smith’s Brigade
consisted of the 11th, 12th
/ 47th, 13th / 154th,
and 29th Tennessee Infantry
Regiments, plus Scott’s Tennessee Battery.
Here was formed an association which was to
last throughout the remainder of the war, for
these six Tennessee regiments continued to
serve in the same brigade, under various
brigade and divisional commanders until the
final surrender in North Carolina. At this
time the brigade had an effective total of
2315 officers and men.
After the Battle of Murfreesboro, the 11th
went into winter quarters at Shelbyville,
where they remained until June 27; when they
retreated with the army to Chattanooga . In
the Battle of Chickamauga, September 19,
20, 1863, the 11th captured 200
prisoners and the colors of the 74th
Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment. General Smith
was killed and Colonel (later Brigadier
General) Alfred J. Vaughan, Jr. took command
of the brigade.
After the battle, the brigade was
transferred for a time to Major General
Thomas C. Hindman’s Division of Lieutenant
General James Longstreet’s Corps, and on
October 22, 1863 the 11th moved to
Sweetwater, but returned November 5, and
participated in the Battle of Missionary
Ridge, November 25, 1863, where they suffered
heavy losses. Major Green was mortally
wounded, captured, and soon after died.
On December 10, 1863, Hindman’s Division
was listed in Major General John C.
Breckinridge’s Corps, and on December 14,
the 11th reported 340 effectives
present. On December 31, 1863, General
Hindman was in command of the Corps, but on
February 20, 1864, the brigade was once again
in Major General B. F. Cheatham’s Division,
and remained there till the end.
After Missionary Ridge, the 11th
retreated to Dalton , Georgia , where they
remained till the beginning of the Atlanta
Campaign May 7, 1864, except for one short
lived expedition to Demopolis Alabama , and
return in February 1864. While at Dalton ,
Captain J. A. Long was first promoted major,
and later to Lieutenant Colonel upon the
resignation of Lieutenant Colonel Thedford.
Captain P. V. H. Weems was promoted to Major
to succeed him.
As a part of Cheatham’s Division,
Vaughan ’s Brigade, the regiment
participated in the almost daily fighting
from Dalton to Atlanta , to Jonesboro . At
Atlanta on July 22, Major Weems was killed,
and Captain J. E. Binns was promoted major to
succeed him. On August 15, 1864, Colonel
George W. Gordon was promoted Brigadier
General and commanded the brigade till the
Battle of Franklin, where he was wounded and
captured. Lieutenant Colonel Long took
command of the regiment, but was himself
mortally wounded at Jonesboro August 31,
1864.
After Colonel Long’s death, the 11th
and 29th were consolidated under
Colonel Horace Rice of the 29th,
and Major John Binns of the 11th.
On the march back to Tennessee, the 11th
/ 29th was detached from the main
army at Gadsden, Alabama, and sent to
Blountsville, Alabama, where it was to meet
and convoy a supply train of 700 wagons
across Sand Mountain. It rejoined the army at
Courtland, from thence to Florence and then
back into Tennessee. At Franklin, November
30, Gordon’s Brigade was in the front line
of Major General John C. Brown’s Division,
Cheatham’s Corps. Every brigade commander
in the division except Gordon was killed, and
Gordon was captured.
On December 10, 1864, Colonel William M.
Watkins was shown in command of the brigade
which now consisted of the 11th /
29th Consolidated, commanded by
Major John E. Binns, 12th / 47th
Consolidated, 13th / 51st
/ 52nd / 154th
Consolidated Tennessee Infantry Regiments,
the 51st and 52nd
having been added to the brigade after the
Battle of Franklin.
It participated in the Battle of Nashville
, December 15, 1864, then joined General
Joseph E. Johnston in North Carolina for the
Battle of Bentonville March 19, 1865. At this
time the 11th / 29th
was commanded by Captain F. F. Tidwell.
On April 9, 1865 the 11th
formed part of Brigadier General Joseph B.
Palmer’s Brigade, Cheatham’s Division,
which was surrendered and paroled at
Greensboro North Carolina May 2, 1865. The 11th
formed Companies "F" and
"K" of the 2nd
Consolidated Tennessee Infantry Regiment,
which was composed of survivors of the 11th,
12th, 13th, 29th,
47th, 50th, 51st,
52nd and 154th
Tennessee Infantry Regiments under the
command of Lieutenant Colonel George W.
Pease.
