22nd North Carolina Infantry, Company M - Part 2

So, the last time I posted, I discussed the timeline of the four Captains of the 22nd North Carolina Infantry, Company M: John Milton Odell, Laban Odell, Warren B. Kivett, and Columbus F. Siler. This time around, I think I will tackle the Lieutenants of the Company.

As I mentioned in my previous post, some of the Captains previously held the office of 1st, 2nd or 3rd Lieutenant. Instead of going over their experiences again, I will instead focus on the other men who also served as Lieutenants in the Company.

The First Lieutenants

First, we'll start with Lewis F. McMasters.

Lewis F. McMasters was elected 2nd Sergeant upon his enlistment in the Company on 10 June 1861. He originally enlisted for a year, but as with most soldiers, he ended up staying a lot longer than that.

Taken from Service Records

When his Captain, John Milton Odell, was "defeated" on 27 April 1862, a bunch of officers shifted in the ranks. 1st Lieutenant Laban Odell filled the spot of Captain, 2nd Lieutenant Warren B. Kivett took Laban's spot as 1st Lieutenant, and Lewis F. McMasters took Warren's spot as 2nd Lieutenant. (Columbus F. Siler took Lewis' spot as 2nd Sergeant.)

Just a few short weeks later, the Company was active in battle with Pettigrew's Brigade at Seven Pines (also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks), which took place 31 May to 1 June 1862. Lewis was wounded here at Seven Pines. According to his service records, he was shot in the arm.

Taken from Service Records

Lewis moved from hospital to hospital with this injury, all while being a Prisoner of War. He was supposedly first admitted to the USA Hospital Steamer Louisiana on 7 June 1862, but my research shows that the steamer may have been on the Mississippi River traveling from Tennessee to Ohio during this time period, so that may be incorrect.

As shown in the clip above, on 8 June 1862, he was moved to the Hygeia Hotel which was being used as a USA General Hospital in Fort Monroe, Virginia.  Then, on 16 June 1862, he was transferred to the Chesapeake Hospital at Fort Monroe. He stayed at Chesapeake, it seems, for almost a month before being transferred to Fort Delaware 15 July 1862.

Fort Delaware seemed to be a horrible location from what I've read. While most of their prisoners were captured at Gettysburg, approximately 2,400 Confederate soldiers are said to have died at Fort Delaware.

Taken from Service Records
States Lewis was "wounded May 31st and in hands of enemy."

On 5 August 1862, Lewis is listed as being part of a prisoner exchange at Aikens Landing, Virginia. While I know a lot of prisoners were exchanged at this location during this time, I can't find any more specifics about this exchange specific to Lewis.

Taken from Service Records
The date of his capture seems to be wrong on this document

In any case, Lewis was apparently granted a furlough upon his exchange, and he doesn't appear back in the service records until October 1862.

I'm not sure what happens to Lewis between October and March, but I know on 16 March 1862, Lewis gets promoted to 1st Lieutenant (Columbus F. Siler takes his spot as 2nd Lieutenant.). Then, 1(0) April 1863, Lewis resigned from his post as Lieutenant and leaves the War. (Columbus, once again, takes his spot as 1st Lieutenant.)

Taken from Service Record
Lewis' resignation letter stating the injury to his arm interfered with his ability to hold his position.

The second person to hold the rank of 1st Lieutenant was Columbus F. Siler. Since I have already mentioned his experiences with the Company in my previous post, I will skip him this time around.

The third person to hold the rank of 1st Lieutenant was James (also appears as John) M. Robbins.

Taken from Service Records

James initially enlisted for service as a 21-year-old on 10 March 1862 for a three-year term. Not a lot seems to have happened to James in his first year in the War, but on 16 April 1863, James was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant.

Then, same as all of the other rank changes in May 1863, James was also promoted. He was promoted to 1st Lieutenant when Columbus was promoted to Captain. (John M. Lawrence was put in the rank of 2nd Lieutenant as James' successor.)

Taken from Service Records

James M. Robbins was merely "present" in the records from April until August. Then, on 25 August 1864, probably at Reams' Station, Virginia, James was wounded.

Taken from Service Records

He was hospitalized at the Camp Winder Hospital in Richmond. On 27 September 1864, he returned to duty and, seemingly, served until the end of the War.

The Second Lieutenants

Henry C. Allred and James M. Pounds were originally elected 2nd Lieutenants when they enlisted with the Company on 10 June 1861. Both men served as 2nd Lieutenant until they were "defeated" 27 April 1862.

Taken from Henry's Service Records

Taken from James' Service Record

Columbus F. Siler took Henry's place as 2nd Lieutenant, and Lewis F. McMasters took James' place. Since I have already discussed their time with the Company, I am going to skip them here. Same with James M. Robbins who served after them in this position.

John M. Lawrence was the sixth and final person to serve as 2nd Lieutenant for the Company. John enlisted 10 June 1861 when the Company was formed and was immediately elected 1st Sergeant.

As with James Robbins, John's time in the War seemed relatively uneventful for the first year. Then, in July 1862, John shows up as being absent from the rolls. It is noted that he was wounded in action. I am unsure when or where this occurred, but he was absent at least through October 1862.

Taken from Service Records

From October 1862 to March 1863, I don't see him in the records, but in March, he is promoted to 2nd Lieutenant. They list on his promotion that he had been previously wounded three times in three battles, but I have not found dates for these wounds yet to venture a guess on where they occurred.

Taken from Service Records

After this promotion is when things get a little more intense for John. On 1 July 1863, John was wounded at Gettysburg and taken as a Prisoner of War.

Taken from Service Records

He is admitted to the USA General Hospital at Newton University in Baltimore, Maryland on 18 July 1863 with a gunshot wound. But by 31 July 1863, he has been transferred to the hospital at Chester, Pennsylvania. He doesn't stay in Pennsylvania long either.

Taken from Service Records

On 31 August 1863, he gets transferred to Sandusky, Ohio. At some point, he ends up at Johnson's Island in Ohio, and he stays there for two years until he is sent to Point Lookout, Maryland for a prisoner exchange.

Taken from Service Records

I don't know if the prisoner exchange was actually to occur, or if they changed their plans, but John was not exchanged at Point Lookout. Instead, he was sent to Fort Delaware. He arrived there 28 April 1865. (I have already alluded to the horrible conditions John would have faced at Fort Delaware.)

Then, on 12 June 1865, John is finally released after having signed the Oath of Allegiance at Fort Delaware.

Taken from Service Records

John, no doubt, had it the worst of all of the men I have highlighted from this unit. He was wounded at least four times, each time in a different battle. He was a Prisoner of War from the time he was last injured at Gettysburg until practically the end of the War.

I have not done any research into this man's life yet, but I am curious if his descendants (if he had any) know what this man went through and the life he led. He was only 20-years-old when he enlisted in the War. To imagine the life he led before he was even 25... this is truly a remarkable man!

Sources:

• Civil War Talk
• Civil War Trust: Seven Pines (there is a beautiful map of the Battle at this site)
• Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of North Carolina (accessed on Fold3)
• Daily Press: The Civil War hospitals at Fortress Monroe
• Fort Delaware Civil War Prison
• Prison Life at Fort Delaware

22nd North Carolina Infantry, Company M

Today, I thought I would focus on an entire Company, rather than a single person. This post will feature the "Randolph Hornets," also known as Company M, 22nd North Carolina Infantry, Confederate States Army. (I also shared this post last night on the Randolph County NCGenWeb site, which I now coordinate, as my first contribution.)

Taken from Company Service Records

The Company was mustered in 10 March 1862, but they had been training at camp since at least 10 June 1861. Here's what the Record of Events shows for the time between 10 June and 31 August 1861:

Taken from Company Service Records

As mentioned in the above muster roll, John Milton Odell was the first elected Captain to the Company. The 28-year-old was Captain from 10 June 1861 to 27 April 1862.

November 1861 to January 1862, he and the Company appear in Evansport, Virginia. In March 1862, he was present at camp near Fredericksburg, Virginia.

On 27 April 1862, John Milton Odell is listed as being "defeated" as Captain causing a vacancy in the position. I'm not sure what that necessarily means, but I know he didn't die in the War since he lived until 1910. He also doesn't simply get demoted, as far as I can tell, because he simply disappears from the War records.

Whatever happened to John Milton Odell, his successor as Captain of the Randolph Hornets is listed as his younger brother, Laban Odell.

Taken from John Milton Odell's Service Records

Laban Odell was promoted from 1st Lieutenant to Captain upon his brother's defeat. (Warren B. Kivett was promoted to 1st Lieutenant in Laban's place.) Laban was Captain from 27 April 1862 until 6 (or 16) March 1863 when he was promoted to Major of entire the 22nd North Carolina Infantry. This was not, however, a good move for Laban. He was killed in action at Chancellorsville on 2 May 1863.

Taken from Laban Odell's Service Records

Just as when Laban was promoted to Captain and Warren B. Kivett replaced him as 1st Lieutenant, Warren B. Kivett replaced Laban as Captain when he was promoted to Major. (Not bad for a guy that started out as a Private when he enlisted!) Warren didn't seem suited for the role of Captain though, or maybe the death of his own former Captain affected him on more than one level, or maybe he just didn't like it, because on 3 May 1863, he resigned from the post.

The final person to fulfill the role of Captain of the Randolph Hornets, and also the youngest person to hold the position in the Company, was Columbus Franklin Siler. This young man may very well be my favorite of all of the soldiers in this Company.

When Columbus enlisted, he was originally elected Sergeant. On the first muster roll I find for him, though, he's listed as "absent" from the Company. But, instead of being missing from the War, he is merely missing from "action." It seems he was sent to Fredericksburg to care for the sick being seen there.

Taken from Warren B. Kivett's Service Records

As far as I can tell, Columbus was not experienced in the medical field. He was still a student before the War, and after the War he was a teacher. Still, I find it honorable that he went to fulfill a need.

Columbus shows up absent once again in July 1862. This time, he is the one wounded. He was wounded in June and sent home on furlough as a result. (Columbus has been promoted to 3rd Lieutenant by this time in the War.) By September though, Columbus had failed to return to duty. I almost got mad at him thinking he was deserting the Company, but he shows back up in October without another mention of it. At some point while on furlough, it seems Columbus was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant.

Columbus made his way up the ranks quickly. I wonder if he was simply that strong of a leader, or if he was simply the result of good fortune. was promoted 16 April 1863 to 1st Lieutenant. Then, just a few weeks later on 3 May 1863, Columbus was promoted to Captain of the Company when Warren resigned his post.

This quick promotion through the ranks didn't seem to help Columbus much though. On 7 May 1863, he was sent to Raleigh from Richmond having been shot.

Columbus shows up as a Prisoner of War being paroled at Appomattox on 9 April 1865. I'm not sure what really happened to the Company (or to Columbus) during those two years between his being shot and the end of the War, but until I find out otherwise, I imagine it must have been rather uneventful.

This look at the experiences of this unit will definitely require some further work, but here is at least an overview of the people in the Company with their highest ending rank (within the Company).

Captains

• John Milton Odell
• Laban Odell
• Warren B Kivett
• Columbus F Siler

1st Lieutenants

• Lewis F McMasters
• James M Robbins

2nd Lieutenants

• Henry C Allred
• John M Lawrence
• James M Pounds

Sergeants

• James E Campbell
• William Coble
• Thomas B Hays
• William Franklin Hays
• William A Pounds
• Henry C Smith
• Stephen W Trogdon
• William P Willey

Corporals

• M R James
• William C Jones
• James M Routh
• Wesley C Siler
• John T Turner

Privates

• Stephen Adkerson
• Simon E Allen
• Benjamin F Allred
• Calvin C Allred
• Emsley Allred
• James A Allred
• Samuel H Allred
• William F Allred
• William Aldridge
• Alfred Norman Arnold
• Thomas Arnold
• John Henry Baker
• Nathan David Barker
• William C Birne
• York Braxton
• Abraham Breedlove
• Henry Breedlove
• Joseph Breedlove
• Newman Breedlove
• Henry Brewer
• James B Brown
• Peter P Brown
• Riley J Brown
• W P Bryant
• Franklin F Burgess
• John P Burgess
• Samuel M Burgess
• W Burgis
• Jackson Cannon
• James Cannon
• H Spain Carroll
• Wesley E Caudle
• John A Caviness
• David O Coble
• John R Coble
• Riley Coble
• J G Conley
• William L Cook
• James M Cox
• Enoch S Craven
• Henry Craven
• Jacob Franklin Craven
• James Cross
• Thomas F Cross
• Samuel Darr
• Marcus Deal
• William H Dean
• J E Dollinger
• Alex P Ellington
• Grandison Euliss
• Andrew J Fields
• Jesse Fields
• William Fields
• Jacob Flinchum
• Josiah F Foster
• Levi Foster
• Christian Foust
• Jacob Foust
• James M Foust
• Peter Foust
• T P French
• James Furgerson
• John D Gatewood
• Jefferson Gentry
• John W Glasco
• William M Glasco
• Calvin Gray
• William R Hardin
• John Hart
• Elias W Hays
• James Madison Hays
• Oliver P Hays
• William A Hays
• Joseph A Henson
• James R Hix
• Lewis F Holder
• Nelson Hulin
• Henry M Hutson
• Stephen W Ivy
• John Jackson
• Peter Jennings
• James Johnson
• Willis Johnson
• Craven Jones
• George Kinney
• J M M Kivett
• Jacob Kivett
• James F Kivett
• Joel Kivett
• John Wesley Kivett, Jr
• John W Kivett, Sr
• K M Kivett
• Stanley Kivett
• Talton Kivett
• Troy Kivett
• John C Lane
• Bartley Yancey Langley
• E Tyson Langley
• William T Laughlin
• Austin W Lawrence
• William A Lingle
• James P Lowe
• A Green McDaniel
• Calvin McLemore
• William McNeil
• A Manis
• E P Miller, Jr
• James Oda
• William O'Dear
• W A Oseley
• Alvens Pen
• James Perry
• Alpheus Pugh
• Daniel P Pulley
• Marshall S Ranes
• William D Reece
• Joseph M Reese
• S M Robbins
• William Thomas Robbins
• Aaron Routh
• George E Routh
• Jesse Routh
• Joseph Alson Routh
• Joshua M Routh
• Wesley P Routh
• William C Routh
• William R Routh
• Enoch P Scott
• James M Scotton
• Edmond T Shouse
• Howard E Smith
• Madison Smith
• J D Spinks
• J G Spronce
• Abner B Steel
• Thomas Stewart
• Wesley A Stewart
• Lorenzo D Stout
• W G Stout
• William O Strickland
• W S Sudderth
• John R Sumner
• Spencer Thompson
• H C Trogden
• Jeremiah F Trogden
• Lyndon A Trogdon
• Samuel Trogdon
• Solomon Trogdon
• Andrew J Turner
• M S Turner
• Thomas Turner
• William B Wall
• James A Webster
• Daniel C Wilkerson
• James M Wilkerson
• William J Wilkins
• Adam O Williams
• Benjamin Williams
• D E Williams
• J R Williams
• James M Williams
• Joel Williams
• Lindsey Williams
• William M Williams
• William A Woosley
• David Wright
• Doris Wright
• Isaac Wright
• Daniel Yergin
• Draxon York
• Clarkson York
• Darius York
• J L York
• Joseph York
• Larkin C York
• Lindsy J York
• William J York

Sources:

• 1850 North Carolina U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• 1860 North Carolina U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• 1870 North Carolina U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• 1880 North Carolina U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• 1900 North Carolina U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of North Carolina (accessed on Fold3)