Civil War experiences of two Eastport men recounted

Memorial Day, which sets aside a time to remember those who have died while serving their country in the armed forces, at first was called Decoration Day to honor those killed during the Civil War. The conflict saw the most lives lost of any war in U.S. history. That level of sacrifice was true for Eastport, too, as some 700 men, nearly a fifth of the city's population, took part in the war, with 100 killed in action and almost 200 severely wounded or dying from disease.

Both broader and more personal accounts of the impact of the war on the island city are given in the just released second edition of John L. Raye's Island Sacrifice, which relates the stories of two men from Eastport who went to fight in the Civil War, his great-grandfather, Henry Wadsworth, and Wadsworth's brother-in-law and best friend, George Sabine, who died during the war. The book uses diaries and letters from both men to provide an insight into their experiences and the time in which they lived.

Wadsworth ended up with the Ninth Maine Volunteer Infantry, which Raye writes was "a brave regiment that took heavy losses and fought in many battles but was not destined to go down in history and lore with a glow of glory. They were of the Army of the James, not the Army of the Potomac."

Sabine was in the First Maine Heavy Artillery Regiment, which had the highest casualties of any Union regiment during the war. Along with Lt. Colonel Sabine, Eastport lost 10 other men in that regiment who were killed in action.

The Ninth Maine lost 644 men, who were either killed or dead because of wounds or disease, which was 32% of all the men enlisted. A total of 182 were killed in action, and 239 died of disease or in Confederate prisons. "They truly earned their reputation as a 'fighting' regiment and deserve to be remembered among the names of the many great regiments that the 'new' state of Maine supplied to the Union cause," Raye writes, noting that quite a few of the men came from Downeast Maine.

"Almost anywhere that a fight occurred during the war, whether on land or sea, there was a man from Eastport present," Raye states in the book. The statistics, though, don't "convey the extent of suffering and damage to this gallant little island city." Many survivors were unable to keep supporting their families, and almost every family was touched in some way. "Some men had seen too much and became depressed, despondent and worse. Some men were deserters and never returned home, perhaps drifting out West. Others never recovered from the shock of the death of a loved one or close friend." It took a long time for the city to recover from the war, and the country "could never fully repay this island community for its sacrifice."

Diaries of the war

Among the battles the Ninth Maine took part in were the capture of Fort Walker and Fort Beauregard in South Carolina on November 7, 1861; the assaults and capture of Fort Wagner and Fort Gregg in South Carolina from July to September 1863; the battles at Walthall Junction, Chester Station, Arrowfield Church, Drewry's Bluff and Bermuda Hundred in Virginia in May 1864; Cold Harbor in Virginia in June 1864; the siege of Petersburg from June 1864 to April 1865; the battles of Strawberry Plains, Chaffins Farm, Charles City Cross Roads and Fair Oaks, all in Virginia in 1864; the capture of Fort Fisher in North Carolina in January and February 1865; and the capture of Fort Anderson, Cape Fear and Wilmington and the occupation of Raleigh, N.C., from February through April 1865.

At Cold Harbor, a Union charge and slaughter were "worse than almost anything in recorded history," Raye writes. In about half an hour on June 3, 1864, 7,000 Union soldiers were dead or wounded when they marched straight into a Rebel stronghold. Wadsworth's only notation in his diary was: "Advanced at the front, losing a lot of men." In his diary, Sabine quoted from a hymn: "Ill that God blesses is our good / And unblest Good is ill / And all is right that seems most wrong / To his dear Will."

Although Gettysburg is better remembered, Raye writes that it was at Petersburg that "Lee's threat was truly ended, and here was the place where the Confederacy died. Here also ended the hopes and dreams of some fine Eastport men." It was there that the Ninth Maine regiment was "part of a diversion that didn't work, while the First Maine Heavy Artillery got slaughtered in their infamous death charge. The First lost 635 men killed and wounded out of 900 men involved. The Ninth then held Fort Stedman, better known as 'Hell.' The Ninth watched from inside as all the small trees in front of Fort Hell were cut down by the intense Rebel fire, but they held their ground and kept the Rebels from retaking the fort."

At Bermuda Hundred on June 30, 1864, the Ninth Maine was "ordered to take some Rebel rifle pits directly in front of the main line of Rebel works. Of the 102 men sent, only 53 came back alive and well. The Ninth's reputation for bravery was growing and it would be augmented at the Battle of the Crater." At that battle, which was a fiasco for the Union troops, "one of the few bright sports was the quality of the fighting" by a few Union regiments, including the Ninth Maine. In the battle, the regiment lost 46 killed and wounded.

The profound stress, exhaustion and terror of war are understated or unsaid in the diary entries made by the two Eastport soldiers. In September 29, 1864, Wadsworth wrote: "A warm day, fighting all day within 5 miles of Richmond. 5 o'clock P.M. I am tired ... can't stand much more. Our Regt. lost 5 officers out of six, dead 40 men, 1 to 1 1/2 [miles?] of Richmond & fell back. Battle of Free Hill."

Similar entries continue, with his writing in February 15, 1865: "Marched all last night up the beach to flank the Rebs. Did not succeed ... mighty tired, it rained and I got wet through. Returned to the Regt. this morning." Four days later he wrote: "Started this A.M. at 10:00. We completely flanked Fort Anderson and obliged the Reb's to vacate. Our Brigade entered the Fort about 5 o'clock. Gunboats started up river. We embarked and went upstream and landed on the opposite side 6 miles above. No sleep of any account."

His entry on March 16 states: "Started out at 6:30 this morning and bivouacked just before dark. Made about 18 miles with the roads very bad in places with the water up to the men's waists. Mighty barren country." The April 3 entry states: "Last night about midnight was roused up, and turned out Regt. As expected Reb cavalry was down on us. Loaded then stacked arms. Rebs did not make another appearance. Rained this PM." And on April 9: "Last night received orders to be ready to move at 3 A.M. Got up at 1:30 and started before day light. We marched through to Fairsons Station. The road we took was 25 miles. The men were mighty tired."

During the siege of Petersburg in June 1864, Sabine was preparing his men for the upcoming fight when he was shot in the thigh by a Confederate sharpshooter, and he was then transported home to Eastport. On June 10, 1865, Wadsworth wrote in his diary: "A bright beautiful day, but a sad one for me. By this morning's mail I had a letter from home informing me of the death of my dear brother George. For more than 12 years he has been in the family and was loved by me as much as a brother could be. He was wounded in front of Petersburg one year ago and has been on his bed ever since suffering daily the most intense pain. Poor George, he prayed that he might die that his suffering should cease. His soul is with the angels now."

At the end of the war, Wadsworth made his way from Raleigh to Eastport, with the over 1,000-mile trek taking more than a month. He married his high school sweetheart, and they raised a family of six children. He died in 1934 at age 90. He was the last Civil War veteran from Eastport and one of the last in Maine.

Reflecting on the toll

Raye says he was inspired to write the book at a very young age. "As a child my dad and my uncles and aunts always wondered out loud just what their grandfather had done in the Civil War. Curiosity got me at age 9, and I then promised myself to do research and discover answers one day when I could."

Reading family letters and diaries answered some of the questions Raye had as to why Wadsworth and Sabine were willing to risk their lives in the war, where Sabine lost his life and Wadsworth "came a hair away from giving his. The biggest impetus was ending slavery. Some sentiment was between the lines, which was common at this time and understandably so. Due to fear of arguments with friends. Patriotism was also paramount."

In closing his book, Raye reflects on the losses and the toll on families, noting they are still felt today. "We can, however, learn from their courage, backbone and sacrifice and emulate those qualities by finding ways to prevent future wars through negotiation whenever social conflict breaks out." Noting that those who fought in the Civil War put their lives on the line for principle, he asks, "Do we have the same courage? If not, we must open up old family diaries and learn from their sacrifice the terrible price of war. We must use all the time-honored skills and attributes of strength to make this a world of peace."

Raye comments, "To me, war is always a last resort after all else has failed and only then in extreme circumstances. Ending slavery was imperative as was ending fascism in World War II. War leaves no one unscarred, and George Sabine was mortally wounded by a Confederate sharpshooter and suffered horribly until death. Henry Wadsworth had several close shaves in combat and almost died of smallpox. Yet this was willingly done. Their sacrifice was justified."

He reflects, "The question is what was solved? Human bondage was greatly reduced even as we still struggle with its lingering inheritance. This was a huge accomplishment. God bless heroes who sacrifice all and also those who return haunted by PTSD or melancholy, as it was referred to in 1865. Fellow Eastporters George Sabine and Henry Wadsworth deserve to be remembered and honored forever."

George Sabine's diary is in the Tides Institute's collections in Eastport, and Henry Wadsworth's diary, letters, uniform and sword are at the Maine Historical Society in Portland.