18th Indiana Light Artillery
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • What's New?
  • Required Equipment In The 18th
  • Photo Album
  • Upcoming Events
  • History of the Battery
  • True Stories of the 18th Indiana
  • Artillery Drill
  • Parts of a Cannon
  • Original Images of the 18th Indiana
  • Hard Tack Recipe
  • Friends & Links
  • Saber Drill
  • Free Downloads

Heroic Deed at Chickamauga

3/1/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
The following action took place September 18th, 1863 at Chickamauga:
 The brigade had been posted to hold Alexander’s Bridge and prevent the crossing of Confederate troops there. Around 10:00 a.m. a Confederate Brigade and Battery attacked Wilder’s position. Four of Lilly’s rifled guns went into battery near the Alexander cabin. Feverishly working one of these guns was Sidney Speed. The battery quickly began loading and firing long range canister and shell at the oncoming Rebels. A half mile opposite of Lilly’s guns, Fowler’s Alabama Battery went into action aginst the guns posted near the Alexander cabin. Lilly’s gunners could hear the first round from Fowler’s guns coming toward them. Bugler Henry Campbell of Crawfordsville wrote in his diary, ” I don’t think I will ever forget the awful, unearthly screeching that shell made as it approached us. It seemed as if it would never strike, it was so long coming.” Campbell along with four or five comrads attempted to take cover behind a small sapling near by. Campbell reported, “We all knew, from the sound of it, that it would strike some place close by.” It did strike close by, the shell bounced in front of the number two gun, then hit the corner of the Alexander cabin, where it ricocheted back toward the guns, landing near some of Lilly’s huddled gunners. Sidney could see the danger to his comrads, calmly he picked up the shell, while the fuse was still burning and “heaved it over” the Alexander cabin where the shell would explode. Captain Lilly witnessed Sidney’s heroic act that had saved the lifes of some of his artillerymen. In his after-action report, Captain Lilly would praise Sidney for this courageous act.


0 Comments
    Picture

    Joe Snell

    I have been in the American Civil War reenacting hobby for several years now. I do Union Artillery (the 18th of course!). I am always busy researching the 18th Indiana Lt. Artillery and it's men.

    Archives

    November 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    March 2014

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.