On the 14th, at evening parade, the following special orders were read to us: HEADQUARTERS SIXTH ARMY CORPS, May 13, 1863. Special Orders No. 120. The term of service of the 27th New York Volunteers having expired, they will proceed to Elmira, N. Y., the place of enrollment, where they will be mustered out of service. Upon arrival there, their arms, equipments and public property will be turned in to the proper officers. The Quartermaster's Department will furnish transportation from Falmouth. The general commanding the corps congratulates the officers and men of the 27th New York Volunteers upon their honorable return to civil life. They have enjoyed the respect and confidence of their companions and commanders. They have illustrated their term of service by gallant deeds, and have won for themselves a reputation not surpassed in the Army of the Potomac, and have nobly earned the gratitude of the republic. By command of Major-Gen. Sedgwick. M. T. MCMAHON, A. A. General. Special Orders No 55. HEADQUARTERS FIRST DIVISION, SIXTH CORPS, In taking leave of the 27th Regiment of New York Volunteers, the Brigadier-General commanding the division is happy to be able to witness to their soldierly qualifications and general good conduct. Their action in the late campaign, on the south side of the Rappahannock, will be a proud record for every officer and man to carry to his home. Their record is said in a few words-" You did your duty!" and did it to the satisfaction of your commanders. By order of Brigadier-General Brooks. A. K. PARSONS, A. A. A. General. GEN. BARTLETT'S FAREWELL ORDER. HDQRS. 2D BRIGADE, IST DIVISION, 6TH ARMY CORPS, Special Order No. 46. May 12, 1863. 177 The term of enlistment of the 27th New York Volunteers having nearly expired, they are ordered to proceed to their rendezvous, at Elmira, N. Y., to be mustered out of service of the United States, on the 21st day of May. This order severs other connections than those which bound the regiment to the military service. Two years of honorable and distinguished service have made you soldiers. After the fall of your gallant and distinguished colonel, I commanded you in the first battle of the Army of the Potomac. I have led you through all of its subsequent campaigns, and have participated with you in a dozen battles. I now send you to the quiet haunts of peace, with the blood of. the enemy upon your honored old flag scarce yet dry. In separating from you, I can only give you my assurance that the honor of the regiment has ever been my care. Our connection has been one of love, cemented by your bravery and noble deeds; and in its severance I believe the regret to be mutual. I have always relied upon you in every emergency, and you have responded with true heroism. You leave brave comrades behind you, stretched in death, upon all our battle-fields. You bear with you the grateful feeling that you have avenged them. In the history of the Army of the Potomac, no prouder record will be inscribed than your own. I hope to see the standard of your regiment once more raised. I hope again to command you: till then, farewell! And may God, in His infinite mercy, bless each and all of you. JOS. J. BARTLETT, Brigadier-General, Commanding. After the orders were read, Gens. Slocum and Bartlett made short addresses to the men; and when the parade was dismissed, we gave them three cheers-the stoutest of the whole term of service. At 3 A. M., on the 15th, the drums sounded the reveille, and at 5 we were packed up and on our way to Falmouth. The different regiments of our brigade turned out to bid us good-by, and as we said adieu to these weather-beaten veterans, we heartily wished the war was over, and that we were all going home together. Arriving at Falmouth, we quickly boarded the cars, and a short run took us to Aquia Creek, where we were soon on board a steamer bound for Washington. About dark we reached the capital and were quartered in the Soldier's Retreat. The next day we spent in Washington, strolling about the city, until about 5 P. M., when we took the cars for Baltimore, where we unloaded to change cars, and remained the rest of the night. Sunday, May 17th.-At daylight we started and ran very slowly; passed Harrisburg about noon; reached Williamsport between 4 and 5 P. M.; made a short stop, and arrived at Elmira about midnight. Left the cars and slept until morning on the platform of the depot. The next morning we marched to the barracks, but finding them very dirty, most of the men took board in private families. The three companies from Binghamton were met at Elmira by a delegation of citizens and tendered an invitation to receive the hospitality of the city. The invitation was accepted. We remained in Elmira till June 5th, when the regiment was mustered out, and we received our discharge, pay, and a bounty of $100, having been in the service two years and twenty-eight days. Thus the 27th disappeared from the scene. We broke ranks forever, and our record passed into history. But few of our men, however, resumed their positions in civil life. Nearly every man was fit to command a regiment, and felt that if his services as a recruit had been valuable to his government, as a veteran they would be doubly so now, and after a few weeks' rest, we find that nearly every man who was able-bodied had reentered the service and was again found fighting the battles of his country. This regiment furnished a large number of the officers and many of the men of that fine regiment, the 1st New York Veteran Cavalry. To write the subsequent history of all the 27th men, we would have to follow them into every army and on to nearly every battle-field of the war. When we say that these men, after the experience they had had, enduring the hardships, sufferings and dangers through which we have GOOD-BY TO THE 27TH. 179 followed them, RE-ENLISTED, we have said enough for a lifetime in their praise. The 27th was indeed a noble battalion, one which won alike the compliments of its generals and the confidence of its associate regiments. During and since the war great esprit de corps has characterized its soldiers. Many of them have attained to prominence in the walks of peaceful life, to the great rejoicing of their comrades, and many have made their final march. God give them rest in peace! THE REGIMENTAL FLAG. The flag of the 27th Regiment of New York Volunteers was the army regulation flag for infantry regiments, and was made of heavy silk, with bullion fringe, and handsomely mounted on a staff. The flag was first the property of Company "I," which was recruited by Capt. C. C. Gardiner, at Angelica; and was presented to the company by Mrs. Church, widow of the late Hon. Philip Church, of Belvidere, near Angelica, through her son, Mr. Richard Church. On the 27th of June, 1861, Company "I" presented the flag to the regiment, at Elmira, and it was carried gallantly and without dishonor, through the two years' term of the regiment. The flag was many times struck by the enemy's shot, and large holes were made by fragments of shell. After the muster out, it was deposited, by the late Col. A. D. Adams, in the Bureau of Military Record, in the Capitol at Albany, and with it is the following record :— “The Regiment was organized at Elmira, May 21st, 1861; from companies raised in Binghamton, Angelica, Lyons, Mt. Morris, White Plains, Lima, Albion and Rochester; and entered the field commanded by Col. H. W. Slocum. The Regiment received the flag from Co. “I,” Capt. C. C. Gardiner, June 27th, 1861. This Company had previously been presented with the flag by Mrs. Philip Church. It has been borne in the battles of First Bull Run, West Point, Mechanicsville, Gaines' Mill, Goldsborough's Farm, Charles City Cross Roads, White Oak Swamp, Malvern Hill, Sec ond Bull Run, Crampton's Pass, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Fredericksburg Heights. The first bearer was Sergt. Burton Freeman, of Co. "I," who was afterwards promoted to be Captain of his Company. At First Bull Run two Corporals were severely wounded on either side of the Color-Bearer. At Gaines' Mill the Color-Bearer was severely wounded. At Fredericksburg Heights, the star now appended to the staff was literally shot out of the flag by a shell. The Color-Bearer in that assault, A. L. VanNess, of Co. "H," contributed it to the Bureau. Col. A. D. Adams transmitted the flag, after the expiration of the Regiment's term of service, to this Bureau." |