570 Norto Carorina Troops, 1861-’65.

battles that soon took place and assisted in repelling the as-
saults on our lines by McClellan’s forces on the Williamsburg
road, near the battle ground of Seven Pines. It was there
placed in Huger’s Division. On the morning of the 28th it
took up its march with Huger’s Division, closely followed by
Magruder’s Division, toward White Oak Swamp. The bri-
gade was not seriously engaged until Malvern Hill, 1 July,
1862. On that evening it went into battle and was conspicu-
ous in the charge made by M agruder upon the enemy’s bat-
teries. Its loss in officers and men was very heavy. (See
Magruder’s and Huger’s reports, Official Records Union and
Confederate Armies.)

After the battles around Richmond the brigade joined in
the general movement against McClellan. Late in August
it was sent by way of Orange Court House and Culpepper
Court House to join Lee’s army on the Potomac. Before
leaving Richmond it was put into Walker’s Division, then
composed of Walker’s and Ransom’s Brigades. On the Rap-
idan, and while en route to unite with the Army of Northern
Virginia, Lieutenant Edward -A. Thorne, of the Twenty-

fourth North Carolina, was assigned to duty as Ordnance
Officer of the brigade.

HARPER'S FERRY AND SHARPSBURG.

Walker’s Division did not reach Manassas until two days
after the battle; it then joined the main body of Lee’s army
and with that army the brigade crossed the Potomac river,
near Shepherdstown, and marched rapidly to Frederick City.
On arrival there, the division was selected to form part of
the command to move against Harper’s Ferry, Stonewall
Jackson’s Division and MeLaw’s Division making the three
divisions assigned to capture that important stronghold of
the enemy. The brigade crossed the Potomac at Point of
Rocks and after forced marches night and day, took its
position on Loudon Heights simultaneously with Jackson’s
appearance on Bolivar Heights and McLaws’ on the Mary-
land Heights. It did its part well in the capture of Har-
per’s Ferry, supporting and assisting Jackson’s famous at-
tack. The Brigade left Harper’s Ferry before the surren-

Ransom’s BRIGADE. 571

der was completed and marched rapidly to Shepherdstown,
passing through the captured town, but not halting. It
crossed the Potomac the same day and joined the main body
of Lee’s army, now near Sharpsburg. The next morning,
Wednesday, 17 September, before day, it took its position in
line of battle on the rightof Lee’s army and remained there
some two hours, when it was ordered double-quick to the left
centre of our lines, near the Dunkard Church. Hood’s, Rip-
ley’s and other troops defending their part of the line, after
a grand resistance, were being forced to retire from the field.
Walker’s Division (as previously stated), composed of Wal-
ker’s and Ransom’s Brigades, rushed into the fight, drove back
the enemy who were pursuing Hood and Ripley, and re-estab-
lished our lines to the right and left of the Dunkard Church.
They remained there during the day, repulsed every move-
ment by the enemy upon their part of the line, and at sunset
were moved along the line of battle a half mile to the right.
During the day they were in the part of the army commanded
by General Longstreet and twice visited by Generals Stone-
wall Jackson and J. E. B. Stuart. The larger part of MecClel-
lan’s army was massed in their front and the fire of artillery
and musketry, such as has seldom taken place in the history of
war, was poured upon them until nearly sunset. About 1
o’clock during the day, the brigade charged a battery of the
enemy, which was in sight of them, and silenced its guns for
the day. On the morning of the 18th, it took the same posi-
tion it had held before at the Dunkard Church and remained
there until that night at 12 o’clock, when it joined the gen-
eral movement to cross the Potomac. (See Generals Wal-
ker’s and Ransom’s reports, Official Records). About day-
light on the morning of the 19th, it crossed the Potomac and
camped on its hills; from there it went into bivouae near
Winchester, and reached Fredericksburg with the advance
of Lee’s columns, in December, 1862.

FREDERICKSBURG.

On the morning of 13 December, Ransom’s Brigade was
posted around the base of Marye’s Heights. With Cobb’s
Georgia and Kershaw’s South Carolina Brigades, Ransom’s