Sunday, September 28, 1862

"An army marches on its stomach."  That quote is attributed to Napolean.  It actually has less to do with food, and more to do with logistics - getting food and supplies to the front lines where the army needs it.

But, that doesn't diminish the importance of food to soldiers like William Fleming and his companions at Camp Butler.  The soldiers' rations were plenty and of good quality, but as Charles Johnson noted, their preparation lacked the skilled, delicate hand of woman.

Each day, two men from each company were detailed to kitchen duty.  On their first day they served as assistants to two other men, who on the previous day were, themselves, the assistants.  Together the four men prepared and cooked for the 100 men in their company.  

And so on their second (and final) day of kitchen duty, they were the experts who instructed their replacements in the art of cooking.  

Tuesday, September 23, 1862

The recruits quickly assimilated into the life of a soldier.  Each company (about 100 men) was assigned to the long, narrow barracks.  At one end of the barracks was the kitchen and store-rooms and at the other end were two or three small rooms for the officers.  Charles Johnson described the rest of the barracks this way:

Through the center of the main room ran a long table made of rough boards, and from which all ate. At the sides of this main room were box-like structures, open in front, having tiers of boards upon which two men slept side by side. These we called bunks. Thus it was that our long, narrow barracks were not unlike a sleeping-car and dining-car combined. The barracks were made of rough boards put on "up-and-down," with no ceiling overhead save the shingle roof, and windows and doors were few, purposely, to save space.

Monday, September 22, 1862

The train completed the 90-mile journey and arrived at the Alton & Chicago station in Springfield well before dawn.  It began to drizzle and, according to Charles Johnson, everyone found shelter where they could. 

With a companion I found shelter in the open vestibule of a church a little south of the station. Next morning we got breakfast at one of the cheaper hotels, and this was destined to be one of our very last meals eaten from dishes placed on a white tablecloth.

Despite the seriousness of their journey, many of them were still star-struck by their surroundings in Illinois' Capital City.  

During the forenoon several of us visited the home of President Lincoln and picked some flowers from the front yard and sent them home in letters. 

Around noon they boarded yet another train - this one on the Wabash Railway - and headed for Camp Butler, seven miles east of Springfield.  They arrived at the camp and passed through a gate near the railway.  The gate was guarded by a uniformed soldier with a gun in his hands.  On the other side of the gate they found an enclosure of about forty acres, surrounded by a high, tight-boarded fence.  Charles Johnson described the camp in this way: 

Along two sides of this enclosure were rows of long, narrow buildings, which were known as barracks.  At one end was the office of the Post Commandant, and nearby, the Commissary and Quartermaster's Department.  At the other end was the Hospital, Guard-House, Sutler's Store, etc.  In the center was a large open space, used as a drill-ground.  In the middle of the rear end, as at the front, was a large gate for teams to pass through, and beside it a smaller one, for the egress and ingress of the men; both were guarded by an armed soldier, and no one could go out without a pass signed by the Post Commandant.

Looking at the camp, I'm sure more than one of them realized they were in the Army now.  

Sunday, September 21, 1862

After about 10 days in Belleville, the recruits were ordered to Camp Butler, which was located northeast of Springfield, Illinois.

They boarded a train for St. Louis, then went by steamboat to Alton, Illinois.  As night fell they boarded another train.  But this time the accommodations were not as comfortable as their previous train rides.  

They climbed on coal cars, and found seats on boards had been laid across from side to side. The ride was anything but pleasant, as those sitting near the outer edge seemed to be in constant danger of falling off.  Everyone was tormented by the smoke, cinders and sparks from the locomotive. 

Saturday, September 13, 1862

The weather was delightful, and the soldiers enjoyed this experience.  At this point, it seemed much more like a camp out then war - and it was.

But, as Charles Johnson pointed out, this was a new experience to most of them, and not necessarily a pleasant one.

However, there was one drawback; meals were taken at the several boarding houses in the city, and as these were substantially all run by Germans, Belleville being largely populated with people of that nationality, the taste and fumes of garlic seemed to permeate every article of food on the table. It was, of course, in all the meats, in many of the vegetables; but every man would have taken oath that it was in the bread and butter, if indeed, not in the coffee and sugar as well.

Thursday, September 11, 1862

Soon it came time for the recruits to leave home.  As Charles Johnson remembers,

At the appointed time friends, neighbors and relatives came with farm wagon and, early one beautiful September morning, the vehicles were loaded with hearty specimens of young manhood, all ideal "cannon-food," and the journey over a dusty road to the nearest railway station, twenty miles away at Carlyle, was begun.

Three or four miles on the road was a hill where we, for some cause, halted for a time. From here I remember taking a look at the Court House, about which we had been drilling for several weeks, and whose friendly roof had sheltered us from rain and sun alike, and as its familiar outline loomed up in the morning's sun I wondered if I should ever again look upon it.

About noon they had traveled straight south of Greenville, and arrived at the town of Carlyle, Illinois.  Soon a west-bound train arrived  on the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad, and they all went aboard.  To many of the 200 recruits, riding on a train, much less inside a railroad coach, was a new experience!

After going west on the train for nearly 30 miles, they got off in O'Fallon, Illinois and marched about seven miles in a southwesterly direction, until they arrived at Belleville.  It was a hot and dusty march.

After they arrived at Belleville, they were directed to the fair grounds where they found quarters in horse and cattle stalls.  The soldiers spread their blankets and quilts on the bright clean straw that had been brought in.  The grounds were enclosed with a high, tight fence, and included shade trees and green, thrifty grass.

Monday, September 8, 1862

As the time for departure drew near, every man visited his home, made his final arrangements, said farewell to his family and friends, and then joined his comrades at Greenville.

Friday, September 5, 1862

Early in September orders came from the State Capital in Springfield.  The Bond County recruits were to rendezvous at Belleville, Illinois, a small city almost 50 miles to the southwest.

For the past several weeks the two companies ate pretty well while still in their civilian clothes.  While they had all taken an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, they were still more civilian than soldier.

But with these orders, that was all about to change.