The 1St Fighting Irish: the 35Th Indiana Volunteer Infantry: Hoosier Hibernians in the War for the Union

THE 1ST

FIGHTING IRISH

THE 35TH INDIANA VOLUNTEER INFANTRY

Hoosier Hibernians in the War for the Union

Kevin Charles Murray

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© 2013 by Kevin Charles Murray. All rights reserved.

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Published by AuthorHouse 11/04/2013

ISBN: 978-1-4918-2677-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-2676-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-2675-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013918781

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Contents

Foreword

Dedication

Introduction

I   American Slavery And Irish Hunger

II   A Concise History Of The 35Th Indiana Volunteer Infantry

III   1861: The Muster

IV   Drummer Boy Abram F. Springsteen

Private Charles Murray

Major John P. Dufficy

V   1862: Kentucky And Tennessee In The Pursuit Of Bragg

VI   The Mullen Clancolonel Bernard F. Mullen, M.d.

Adjutant Bernard R. Mullen

Surgeon Alexander J. Mullen, M.d.

Lieutenant Colonel Hugh D. Gallagher

VII   1863: Rosencrans’ Campaign In Tennessee And Against Chattanooga

VIII   Father Peter P. Cooney, C.s.c.

Colonel Augustus G. Tassin

Captain Henry N. Conklin

IX   1864: Against Atlanta And The Pursuit Of Hood

X   Private Andrew Hays

Lieutenant Colonel Richard J. Ryan

Quartermaster Martin Igoe

Captain James Mchugh

XI   1865: Tennessee And Texas

XII   Colonel John Crawford Walker

Epilogue

Bibliography

Endnotes

Indiana War Memorial Commission

1st Irish, 35th Regiment Indiana Volunteers, The National Colors

Foreword

The origins of this book are purely accidental. Searching for Murray genealogical information, I was led to the 35th Indiana Voluntary Infantry (1st Irish) Regiment by the late Monsignor John J. Doyle, Professor of History Emeritus of Marian College (now Marian University). Monsignor Doyle provided a key to a store house of my family history. To my surprise, my Great Great Grandfather, Charles Murray, an Irish immigrant from County Donegal, was a member of the 1st Irish of Indiana and died of wounds received at the Battle of Stones River. I was charged by this discovery and promptly began researching Charles Murray and his Regiment. From my study of the 35th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, its officers and men, as well as the politics of the period, I concluded that a written examination of the First Irish might provide an interesting and unique perspective. Perhaps the following pages serve that purpose, and maybe more. May the memory of their Irish-American patriotism and public service be forever etched into our minds.

Dedication

This humble effort is lovingly dedicated to the late Albert Francis Kelly Murray, my Dad. A true patriot and dedicated public servant, he risked his life and limb in the South Pacific in World War II and in the burning homes and buildings of Indianapolis. As a U.S.M.C. Sergeant, a Captain on the Indianapolis Fire Department, and as a father, he always put others first. I hope he would appreciate this effort to capture and record the memory of other Irish Americans who possessed that same zeal of selflessness and the willingness to pay the supreme sacrifice.

Introduction

There is nothing equal to the dash of the Irish soldier. He is at home everywhere. He will charge a battery in the best possible humor; and his courage then and there, is only equal to his impudent innocence in courting a milliner’s apprentice. For true hospitality commend us to the Irish soldier. He will share his blanket and his bottle. The best ‘the counthry fiords,’ is not too good for his guest and friend. He will sing to amuse you; he will relate legend after legend of his native land to entertain you; legends, abounding with all the wit, eloquence, and poetry of his Dear Ould Ireland.¹

Author’s Collection

Lithograph of Easter Mass 1864

Featuring Father Peter Paul Cooney

Chapter I

AMERICAN SLAVERY AND IRISH HUNGER

With the clarity of hindsight, one can readily appreciate two historic economic and social events which led to the development of the 35th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, the 1st Irish. Both were extremely sad examples of man’s inhumanity to his fellow man. The first event occurred in America, while the second developed in Ireland. Together, they combined to bring about the 1st Irish of Indiana.

In the American Colonies of the late 1700’s, the issue of slavery was a chronic, but not yet acute concern. When the colonists tentatively agreed to shed the shackles of English domination, the issue of slavery was placed uncomfortably aside. Following the American Revolution, the Constitutional Convention grappled with slavery and through several compromises, temporarily unified the States and thereby created a new nation superficially dedicated to the proposition that all men were created equal. Unfortunately, men was not defined and hollow compromises would prove ineffective over time. Thus, the north and south periodically clashed. The exact nature of the federal union of states, and the true rights of men were left unresolved.

During this period the south became increasingly dependent upon cotton and consequentially, slavery. The number of southern slaves in 1820 was 1,643,000. That figure rose dramatically to about 4 million in 1860. As there had been an increasing demand for cotton, its empire expanded. Cotton was indeed king and its demand seemed endless. By 1860, cotton represented three-fifths of all of the value of America’s exports.²

In 1832, South Carolina declared by convention that the federal Tariff Act of 1832 was null, void, and no law and threatened secession. However, a compromise measure, the Tariff Act of 1833, ended the crisis. But the issue of slavery and states’ rights remained unresolved.

During the 1830’s and 1840’s, the slavery abolition movement spread throughout the northeastern states and westward to the states north of the Ohio River. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 had delayed direct confrontation. However, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 effectively repealed the Missouri Compromise and allowed slavery in the Western Territory. The 1854 Act forced the political parties to scramble in order to resolve the issue politically, rather than by force. The two major parties, the Democrats and the Whigs, straddled the issue of slavery. Each party included southerners, as well as northerners. As a consequence of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, many northerners from both parties formed the Republican Party in 1854.³

In 1856, four separate political parties contended for the presidency: The Democrats, the Republicans, and the Whigs and the American Know Nothing Party. While the Democrats prevailed with the election of James Buchanan, the old political alignments were in flux and significant and serious change was inevitable.

The Know-Nothing Party, was dedicated to electing to public office only Protestants. The Party, which was founded in 1845, grew in power in the early 1850’s. However, by its 1855 national convention, a split occurred on the issue of slavery and the Party lost strength. The northern Know-Nothings, steadfastly anti-Irish, helped form the Republican Party.⁴

In the presidential election of 1860, Abraham Lincoln, as the Republican candidate, had the support of former northern Whigs and Know-Nothings. On the other hand, the Democratic Party split in two with northern Democrats supporting Douglas, and southern Democrats supporting John C. Breckenridge. A relict of the Whig Party nominated John Bell of Tennessee for President. In the electoral college, Lincoln prevailed (180), with Breckenridge coming in second (72), while the moderates Douglas and Bell followed far behind. The 1860 election revealed a very polarized nation, with the necessary and tragic confrontation looming large on the horizon.⁵

The second episode which contributed to the establishment of the 35th Indiana Volunteers was the Irish Famine. In fact, there was no famine, but there was severe hunger and desperate starvation. The potato was introduced to Ireland via Sir Walter Raleigh—a food brought to Europe from the Americas. However, the potato crops of 1845, 1846 and 1847 failed due to a blight. Over 1 million and a half Irish starved to death in the Great Hunger, and another million emigrated, primarily to the United States of America.⁶

It is impossible to imagine the horrors of the Great Hunger. Unfortunately, it was clearly predictable and sadly avoidable. But, much like the Americans refusal to deal definitively with slavery, the English simply ignored the awful reality of Hunger in Ireland.⁷

The Hunger’s die was cast in 1801 when by the Act of Union, England eliminated Irish home rule and governed the island from London. At this time, the population of Ireland totaled an estimated four and a half million. However, the development of the potato had provided the Irish peasants with a dependable and cheap staple food. While the Irish peasant family depended solely on potatoes for food, the family’s other small plots were cultivated for cereals. The grain was sold or tendered to the landlord for rent. Fortunately, Ireland was a very productive agricultural country. However, it was the English landlords who benefited from the produce, while the peasant farmers relied upon the common potato.⁸ Unfortunately, during the next four decades, the Irish population virtually