the United States had ever produced, with two and one quarter years’ experience, all of it war, inured to hardship and danger, never having been repulsed or driven, thoroughly drilled and disciplined, well officered, a perfect fighting machine! We heard the tramp of moving troops in our front, supposing it to be our own men, but the enemy in full charge appeared in our immediate front and secured the advantage of the first volley. Quickly we responded with a rattling fire, not waiting for orders. Load and fire at will was the impulse and action of all. Commands could not be heard. The enemy’s line was fairly repulsed and their second line had come to their assistance. We were holding our own and gradually gaining, with full confidence that we were whipping or gaining the fight. During this period of time our division and brigade commanders were sending orders for us to fall back—our left flank was being turned—but orders were slow in reaching us. Horses could not live to carry them on that bloody field, our regimental field officers were quickly dismounted and in the furry of that musketry the word had to be passed along the line that our flank was exposed and we must retreat across the field. Gradually that line moved back to the road where all could see the line of gray already swinging across the open to our left. A hasty retreat was made to the fence on the opposite or west side of the field, where, with a promptness under fire never excelled, the regiment rallied and again opened on the enemy, which lasted but a few minutes, when reinforcements (a brigade from Sheridan’s division), came rushing to our left. We recrossed the field, driving the enemy beyond our first position in the timber on the east side of the road, for hours without protection of any kind, at very close range. We had contended for the position of that road, and as the sun closed its gaze by passing behind the western hills we were masters of the situation. Over half of the company had fallen in two or three hours, desperate fighting, not as Greek meets Greek but as Americans meet Americans. Go view the fields, ye good people of Morrow County! Stand by that monument erected by the great State of Ohio to the memory of the 26th, 212 of whom fell in that bloody battle, three-fourths of them undoubtedly on the Vineyard Farm, and then, but a few yards away, see the one erected by the State of Georgia in memory of the 20th regiment infantry, C. S. A., from that state, and read their inscription (“This regiment went into battle with 23 officers; of this number 17 were killed and wounded”), and then read Vanhorn’s description. In speaking of that part of the battlefield (the Vineyard Farm) he says: “Mapped upon field and forest in glaring insolation by the bodies of the slain.” Chaplain Thomas B. Vanhorn was General Thomas’ chosen historian. He superintended the moving of the bodies of the slain from Chickamauga to the National Cemetery at Chattanooga. As daylight faded and darkness began we closed our lines to the right, sent one guard from each company fifty paces to the front and supplied ourselves with a double quantity of cartridges. One cavalryman came to each company, secured their canteens, went to Crawfish Springs, over a mile away, and returned them to us filled with much-needed water. Thus the good Samaritan act was performed by them.

Soon a temporary truce was formed, details made, and Johnnie and Yank were soon mingled together, caring for the wounded as best they could. At about 2 or 3 a. m., Sunday morning, orders were quietly whispered along the line to prepare to move, and very soon the line silently moved to the left a distance of nearly two miles and was halted on the east slope of Missionary Ridge, nearly a mile north of the Widow Glenn house, and we were informed that we were to be the reserve. This position we held until 9 or 9:30 a. m., when we were moved to the front line, Wood’s division relieving that of General Negley. The 26th Ohio was about one-fourth mile southwest of the Brotherton house, it being the extreme right of the division. The losses of the previous day had shortened the division line until we failed in filling the space vacated by Negley, and in order to do so extended to the right to reach the left of McCook, until our line became attenuated. We heard the roar of the battle to our left gradually coming nearer; we were heavily skirmishing with the enemy while in this condition about 11 a. m. when General Wood received written orders from General Rosecrans “to close up on Reynolds and support him.” A division line of battle, as we formed at that time, was half a mile or more. Reynolds commanded the 2nd division at our left, Brannon’s intervening. Hence Wood, when he executed the order, moved in rear of and parallel to Brannon, we being the extreme right of Wood, by moving in column to the left, the 8th Indiana Battery in our immediate front. When we had marched nearly half a division length, the battery, in its difficulties, having no road in the timber, much of it heavy underbrush with bad ravines to cross, delayed the two regiments in the rear, while the head of the column was hastening to the support of Reynolds. This had left us far in the rear. In this condition we received the enemy’s charge. Naturally and rightly, all that could followed the head of column as per orders. We of the 26th Ohio and 13th Michigan, in the extreme rear, were compelled to stop and repulse the charge, thereby becoming isolated from all our commands and in the center of that one-half-mile gap that was created by a mistaken order and resulted in dividing the army. As soon as the battery extricated itself from its difficulties, Colonel Young, our regimental commander, ordered us to fall back. It was useless sacrifice to do otherwise. We were halted several times at favorable localities to check the enemy, and that gallant band of heroes, if you please, held its organization under as trying circumstances as war produces, its last stand being made upon the side of a spur of Missionary Ridge, where a tablet now stands to mark its heroism. Here we held position for nearly an hour, aided by the 8th Indiana and 6th Ohio Batteries. To our left the right of Brannon’s division was flanked and to protect itself swung back to the north. To our right the left of Davis’ division was flanked and to protect itself swung back to the south, thus widening the gap and leaving us that much farther from support on either side, the enemy advancing, taking protection of timber to the south and also to the north of us, gaining our flanks, and we were compelled to abandon our position. Here the 8th Indiana Battery by its loss of horses was compelled to abandon their pieces. We retreated to the dry valley road and thence with Sheridan and Davis to Roseville. Our part in the battle of Chickamauga was over.

Colonel Fox, under the head of “maximum percentage of casualties in a single engagement under circumstances showing that few if any of the missing were captured men,” places the 26th Ohio thirty-fifth in the list of over two thousand regiments that were in the service during the war of the rebellion, and, basing his estimates on 362 engaged and the total loss 212, as previously stated, at 58.5 per cent. Basing the estimates on Colonel Young’s report of 350 engaged, total loss 213, gives us a small fraction of over 60 per cent. Of this, company E lost 20, or even 62.5 per cent, 12 of whom were killed or mortally wounded—37.5 per cent. The killed and mortally