1898 Spanish-American War
1st N.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment
At least 11 men from Henderson County served with the 1st N.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
The regiment went into camp May 1898 at Raleigh. The historical marker designating the site of the camp is east of the state fairgrounds on Hillsborough St.
On May 22, 1898, the regiment left Raleigh and went to Jacksonville, Fla. On Oct. 24, 1898, the regiment left Jacksonville, Fla., for a camp near Savannah, Ga. On Dec. 7, 1898, the regiment boarded the transport Roumanian and sailed for Havana, Cuba. The unit arrived in Cuba on Dec. 11, 1898, and was encamped seven miles from Havana. The Treaty of Paris was signed Dec. 10, formally ending the Spanish American War, the day before the troops arrived in Cuba. While in Cuba, the troops performed guard duty on the outskirts of Havana. In March, the regiment left Cuba to return to Savannah, Ga., where the men were discharged.
During its term of service, one man was killed in a train accident and 26 soldiers died from disease. One member of the regiment was murdered. One hundred and fifteen men were discharged in disability. Seven men were court-martialed and 36 men deserted.
2nd N.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment
At least 11 men from Henderson County served with the 2nd N.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
The regiment went into camp May 1898 in Raleigh. The historical marker designating the site of the camp is east of the state fairgrounds on Hillsborough St.
After six weeks of camp instruction, the companies were detached for guard duty at different locations. Companies A and E were sent to Tybee Island, Ga.; Companies D and G to Land’s End, S.C.; Companies C and I to St. Augustine, Fla.; and Companies F and M to Fort McPherson, Atlanta, Ga. Headquarters staff and Companies B, H and K were sent to St. Simon’s Island, Ga.
The unit was mustered out of service in November 1898 and never left the United States.
During the regiment’s term of service, 20 men died from disease and 55 were discharged on disability. One man was court-martialed and 27 men deserted.
3rd N.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment
At least three men from Henderson County served with the 3rd N.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
This was an “all black” regiment led by white officers. The regiment was mustered into service in July 1898 at Fort Macon and remained at Fort Macon until Sep. 14. The regiment was then sent to Knoxville, Tenn., and in November sent to Macon, Ga. On Dec. 21, the troops passed in review before President William McKinley. In February 1899, the regiment was mustered out of service.
The history of the Third Regiment is particularly noteworthy. Gov. Daniel Lindsey Russell encouraged the formation of a black regiment, one of three formed in the nation during the war.
The all-black regiment looked forward, as historian Joseph F. Steelman writes, to “prove themselves worthy of the rights and obligations of citizenship.”
When the regiment was transferred to Knoxville, Tenn., they suffered severe discrimination and terrible treatment from the local population. White civilians killed at least two North Carolina black soldiers and two other black men from North Carolina, according to the N.C. History Project http://www.northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/8/entry/
Another source states the two black soldiers were murdered in Georgia.
While the regiment was in Macon, Ga., a race riot erupted in Wilmington. On their return to North Carolina, many of the men were treated “as pariahs” instead of heroes.
During the regiment’s term of service, one officer was killed in an accident, 13 men died of disease and two men were murdered. Twelve men were discharged on disability and 14 men deserted.
1st S.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment
At least one man from Henderson County served with the 1st S.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The regiment served its term of service within the United States.
The regiment mustered into service in May 1898. The men were based in May 1898 at Camp Ellerbe on the state fairgrounds outside of Columbia, S.C. In June they moved to Camp Thomas in Georgia at Chickamauga, Park. In late July they moved to a camp near Jacksonville, Fla. In September they returned to Columbia, S.C., where they mustered out of service in November 1898.
During its term of service, 19 men died from disease, 12 men were discharged on disability and 35 deserted.
2nd S.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment
At least one man from Henderson County served with the 2nd S.C. Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
The regiment mustered into service in May and June 1898 at Columbia, S.C. In September the men moved to the base near Jacksonville, Fla. In October, the regiment was transferred to Savannah, Ga.
The regiment was sent to Cuba as part of the occupation force after the war ended. The men left on board the transport Roumanian in January 1889 and arrived in Cuba three days later. The regiment remained in Cuba until late March 1889 when they departed for Savannah, Ga. They mustered out of service April 19 at Augusta, Ga.
During its term of service, 19 men died of disease, three were discharged by court-martial, and 51 deserted.
1st U.S. Infantry Regiment
One man from Henderson County, Prioleau O. Gilreath, served with the 1st U.S. Infantry in Cuba during the Spanish-American War.
The 1st U.S. Infantry Regiment was assigned to Col. Miles’ 2nd Brigade in the 2nd Infantry Division. This regiment participated in the Battle of El Caney.
El Caney occupied a strategic spot along the Santiago-Guantanamo road. The U.S. forces under Brig. Gen. Henry Lawton, heading to Santiago, were one mile southeast of El Caney on June 30, 1898.
El Caney was defended by 650 Spanish troops. The battle began at daybreak July 1. Col. Miles’ 2nd Brigade was to be held in reserve. But, Spanish resistance did not crumble as expected. Also, the Spanish used Mauser rifles firing smokeless powder so pinpointing their sharpshooters was difficult. By 10 a.m. the American attack had stalled. Lawton then brought up the reserves. He now had more than 6,000 troops in the line.
The battle resumed an hour later. Furious Spanish fire met American attempts to advance upon the blockhouses and barbed-wire trenches around El Viso, and U.S. casualties mounted. At 1 p.m. Lawton received a frantic message to break off the El Caney attack and support the attack on the San Juan Heights (San Juan Hill). Lawton, having already ordered a final push on El Caney, refused to disengage.
With the south battery now in range, U.S. artillery fire had effect on the Spanish positions. Chaffee’s men finally took El Viso at 3 p.m. Spanish troops attempting to escape met other U.S. regiments on the main road. The last Spanish blockhouse fell after fierce resistance about 30 minutes later.
In the battle the Spanish lost 248 killed and more than 300 captured and the Americans had 81 killed and 360 wounded.
Along with the victory at San Juan Hill, U.S. forces were now in position to shell Santiago, and the city fell to the Americans and Cubans on July 16.
1st Battalion U.S. Marines, Co. D
The First Marine Battalion was the first unit to actually land and fight the Spanish in the Spanish-American War.
Marines from east coast posts, stations, and receiving ships assembled at New York Navy Yard. On April 22, the First Marine Battalion boarded the USS Panther and left the Brooklyn Navy Yard. On April 23, the Panther reached Fort Monroe off Hampton Roads, Va., and waited three days for the escort ship USS Montgomery. On April 29, they arrived at Key West.
On June 7, Key West Naval Station received a telegram from the acting secretary of the Navy that stated: “Send the Marine Battalion at once to [Admiral] Sampson without waiting for the Army send Yosemite as convoy.”
On June 10 the Marines arrived at Guantanamo Bay and Marines began disembarking. On June 11, the first Spanish attack took place on outlying Marine outposts. The first two Marines killed were serving with Co. D. The Spanish made five separate attacks on Camp McCalla and all were repulsed.
On June 12, Spanish forces attacked again. Again Company D suffered casualties. After nearly three days of constant attacks and sniper fire, Marines attacked the Spanish forces. The Spanish were fighting to protect their only fresh water supply near Cuzco Beach about six miles southeast of Camp McCalla, where the Marines were based.
This is known as the Battle of Cuzco Well. Companies C and D with more than 50 Cuban insurgents and supported by the gunfire of the USS Dolphin fought for most of the day. The Marines destroyed the well. Spanish casualties were 60 killed, 150 wounded and 38 captured. Marine casualties were two wounded with 23 suffering heat exhaustion. Cuban insurgents had two killed and two wounded. Spanish forces were now cut off from their source of fresh water and were forced to retreat. Attacks on the Marines at Guantanamo Bay were reduced to incidents of sniper fire.
On Aug. 5, the Marines boarded the USS Resolute to return to the United States.
Marine Zebulon A. Shipman of Henderson County was not on board. He was transferred as a Marine Guard to the USS Iowa that left Guantanamo Bay the same day. The USS Iowa had many Spanish prisoners onboard, including Spanish Admiral Cervera. The USS Iowa arrived in New York on Aug. 20.
Philippine-American War
24th Infantry Regiment
The 24th Infantry Regiment was one of the Buffalo Soldier regiments. All the enlisted soldiers were black.
Two men from Henderson County, Walter H. Bryson and George Spann, served with this regiment during the Philippine-American War.
Based on enlistment dates and military records, George Spann most likely was with the regiment when it deployed to the Philippine Islands in 1899.
The 24th Infantry served on the main island of Luzon until August 1902. The soldiers participated in the capture of the town of San Isidro in north central Luzon in late 1899. They also conducted many small unit actions on Luzon during 1900 against insurgents and secured lines of communication. One of the most notable battles occurred Dec. 7, 1899, when nine soldiers from the regiment routed 100 guerrillas from their trenches.
In 1901 the 24th Infantry returned to the U.S. and was stationed in Montana at Fort Keogh. In 1906 the regiment returned to Luzon in the Philippines for two years of garrison duty.
It was during these two years that Walter H. Bryson was with the unit in the Philippines.
47th Infantry Regiment
Thomas Hollingsworth served with the 47th Volunteer Infantry Regiment in the Philippines.
This unit fought insurgents on the Luzon group of islands.
In 1900, fighting in the Philippines had shifted from conventional warfare to guerrilla warfare. During the first four months of the guerrilla war, the Americans had nearly 500 casualties.
Hollingsworth was killed in action during guerrilla fighting near Mount Bulusan, an active volcano, in the province of Sorsogon in the Bicol Region.
9th Infantry Regiment
Henderson County’s Wiley Zebulon V. Cox enlisted in the 9th Infantry Regiment in November 1899.
At the time of his enlistment this unit was in China. The regiment had fought the Chinese during the Boxer Rebellion to protect Americans and American interests in China.
Based on unit histories, it appears that Cox was first in Peking, China. The 9th Infantry remained on guard at the entrance of Peking until withdrawing in mid-1901 and returning to the Philippines.
The regiment arrived in Manila in June 1901 and was assigned to Samar, to quell a rebellion on the island. They had many encounters with Filipino rebels.
Wiley Zebulon V. Cox died May 1, 1902, of malaria in the hospital at Manila. The 9th Regiment returned to the United States in May 1902.
1st Infantry Regiment
Prioleau O. Gilreath served with the 1st Infantry Regiment on Samar Island in the Philippines.
In 1900, the regiment was preparing for shipment to China to participate in the Boxer Rebellion. Instead, the regiment was detoured to the Philippine Islands.
The regiment fought on Samar Island in the guerrilla war from 1900 to 1902. The fighting was against rebels in dense jungle fights.
Gilreath drowned on Samar Island when the raft in which he was riding overturned during a river crossing.
12th U.S. Cavalry
Atlas Jones and John W. Hoots served with the 12th U.S. Cavalry.
This regiment was organized Feb. 8, 1901, at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
In 1903, the regiment was deployed to the Philippines. Following two tours of duty in the Phillippines, the regiment returned to the United States in February 1911.
The cavalry troops fought jungle warfare, dismounted. Daily patrols were sent out from base camps to search for insurgents. The tropical climate, illness and guerrilla warfare caused many casualties.
Hoots was discharged for disability in 1903. Jones served until 1906.
27th Infantry Regiment
William Jefferson G. Hill and Jesse B. Wright of Henderson County both served with the 27th Infantry Regiment. Wright was discharged in 1901 and may not have deployed to the Philippines.
The regiment was deployed to the Philippines in February 1901 and fought on the island of Mindanao. Hill filed a pension application for disability in 1905, so most likely fought with the 27th Infantry in the Philippines.
After defeating the Moro insurgents, the 27th Infantry was sent to Camp Sheridan, Ill., in 1904.
6th Infantry Regiment
Gus Lyda of Henderson County served with the 6th Infantry Regiment.
The 6th Infantry was serving in the Philippines when Lyda enlisted in 1910. They were based at Mindanao. Sometime between 1911 and 1913 the regiment returned to the Presidio in San Francisco, Calif.
Lyda was discharged for disability in 1913 from the hospital at the Presidio.
Army Hospital Corps
Two men from Henderson County served in the Army Hospital Corps in the Philippines – Richard B. Evans and Joseph V. Pace. They were based in the Philippines from about 1902 to 1906.
After the Spanish surrendered, the Army built large base hospitals to care for the occupying troops. These hospitals, and smaller ones built on other islands, housed wounded and sick soldiers. Initially the Filipinos fought using standard western techniques, but soon switched to guerilla warfare. Along with clubs, daggers, and bamboo spears, swords and knives were also used.
Records indicate that only about 10 percent of hospitalized soldiers suffered combat injuries. Injured soldiers were evacuated by litters or mules out of the jungles.
Most of the patients suffered from diseases, such as malaria, typhoid fever, dysentery and heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
One surgeon reported that “he never knew of a hospital corps man who failed in his duty in any way under fire.” Another later commented that the Hospital Corps had much improved since the Spanish-American War, many stewards and even some privates being “capable of rendering very valuable assistance to the surgeons.”
79th Coast Artillery Corps
Charles Washington Freeman served with the 79th Coast Artillery Corps. This unit did not leave the United States and was not in the Philippines.
The U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps was responsible for coastal and harbor defense.
Freeman was based at Fort Adams, Rhode Island.