Monday, February 20, 1865

Today the regiment received orders to march to Bull Head Landing, Louisiana.  They left camp a little before noon and marched to Bull's Head Landing, where they remained in the dock-yard all the afternoon.  In the early evening they went aboard the steamer St. Mary - the same St. Mary that brought them from the sandy shores of Texas to Louisiana almost exactly one year ago.

William Fleming remembered the trip well:

we rec orders to move and went abord of the steamship St. Marry, and Launched out, we were soon overtaking with severe wind which made it very unfavorable to us, and causing our vessel to become almost unmanageable and our boys all were seasick and vomited without the least aid of medisene but finaly the winds abated  and the sea became calm, and we landed at Ft Morgan on the 23d

The men were all very tired and had not yet eaten their dinner.  Their meat rations, for the convenience of their march, were dried herring.  They ate heartily.  

As night approached the St. Mary moved away from the wharf and headed down the river.  Meanwhile, the men unrolled their blankets and stretched out on the deck sleeping soundly.