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| "End of the Journey": John Hack took part in doomed fleet (From 1902's "Deeds of Valor") |
At a cemetery
this weekend in Missouri, as part of a national annual tribute to Medal of Honor
recipients, a soldier will be remembered for taking part in a desperate mission
to ferry supplies to Union forces below Vicksburg, Ms.
The Sons of
Union Veterans of the Civil War, VFW Post 919 and other lineage groups and city
officials will gather at 2 p.m. Sunday for a commemoration ceremony in Trenton’s Maple Grove Cemetery to
honor Pvt. John Hack, who survived the ordeal by clinging to a bale of hale after a barge caught fire.
Hack was one
of about 10 men to receive the Medal of Honor for the May 3, 1863, attempt to
take supplies past Rebel fortifications on the Mississippi River. The gallant effort
failed, but it is remembered for what the soldiers endured, including their
stint as prisoners.
“They put their life on the line to do that,” said Kevin L.
Miller, commander of Westport Camp #64 of the SUVCW. “They weren’t thinking of
a medal. They were thinking of winning the war.”
Hack – a native
of Hessen state in Germany -- came to the United States at age 5 when his family settled in Indiana, according to his 1933 obituary in the Trenton newspaper.
He enlisted in July 1861 at age 18, in Adrian, Mich. Hack served with
the 47th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which saw hard action at Vicksburg,
the linchpin of control of the Mississippi River. (Photo is from about 1915)
“One of
Grant’s greatest challenges during the Vicksburg campaign was finding safe
passage across the Mississippi River without being cut down by Confederate
gunfire,” says the American Battlefield Trust. “He tried to cross his troops at
De Soto Point, Lake Providence, Yazoo Pass, and Steele’s Bayou with no
luck. Then he came up with an ambitious plan to use the navy to provide
transports for the river crossing. Success hinged on getting boats safely past
the Confederate guns at Vicksburg and seizing control of the river south of the
city.”
Union
detachments that crossed below Vicksburg were away from the main supply line,
necessitating efforts to resupply them.
Capt. William
H. Ward of the 47th Ohio led the May 3, 1863, nighttime effort to
bring supplies.
Walter Beyer
and Oscar Keydel provided Ward’s account in their 1902 volume “Deeds of Valor.”
The force needed to navigate the “S” bend at Vicksburg and withstand about 100
Confederate guns. “It seemed impossible that anyone could live under such terrible
fire,” the authors write.
About 35 volunteers
came forward to help move two supply barges. Here is Ward’s account in the book. It’s
lengthy, but the information is very compelling.
"We cast
off from Milliken's Bend, La. about fifteen miles above Vicksburg at ten o'
clock PM. The trip down the river was uneventful until two o' clock in the
morning, when a rocket sent up from one of the Confederate batteries warned the
enemy of our approach, and we were soon under a heavy fire. It was a wild ride
we had from this time on.
"Battery
after battery opened on us, as we came within range, until it seemed that the
guns were being played upon like the keys of a piano, and to say that the rain
of shot and shell was terrific, but faintly describes the situation. The scene
was indescribably grand and awe inspiring, as we steamed slowly past the city
amid the roar of more than a hundred guns with their death dealing missiles
whistling and shrieking over and around us, and exploding on board while the
patter of bullets from the infantry resembled a fall of hail stones. The barges
were large and unwieldy; and as we could make only about six miles an hour at
best, the enemy's gunners were able to get our range accurately. We had been
struck many times, but not seriously damaged. The little tug seemed to bear a
charmed life, for we passed several times within a hundred yards of the
heaviest batteries.
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| Vicksburg and its defenses; click to enlarge (Library of Congress) |
"We had
now been under fire three quarters of an hour, and had reached a point below
the city where ten minutes more meant safety. The steady puff-puff of the
little tug gave assurance that all was right and we were beginning to indulge
in mental congratulations on the success of the expedition when a roar like the
bursting of a volcano caused the barges to rock as if shaken by an earthquake,
and in an instant the air was filled with burning coals flying timbers and
debris. A plunging shot from a heavy gun stationed on an eminence far in the
rear had struck the tug and penetrated to the furnaces where it exploded,
blowing the boilers and machinery up through the deck, and completely wrecking
the vessel.
"The
blazing coals fell in a shower over both barges setting fire to the bales of
hay in hundreds of places at once. The enemy sent up a cheer upon witnessing
our misfortune, and for a few minutes seemingly redoubled their fire. The tug
went down like a plummet while the barges were soon blazing wrecks, drifting
with the eddying current of the river. No recourse remained, but surrender and
the waving of a handkerchief from a soldier's bayonet caused the firing to
cease. The flames compelled the survivors to seek safety by taking to the
water, and having no boats we floated off on bales of hay and found them
surprisingly buoyant. The wounded were first cared for and then all took
passage on the hay bale line.
"The
enemy now hailed us from shore, ordering us to come in and surrender, but on
learning that we had no boats, sent their own to our assistance capturing all
but one of the survivors. That one, Julius C. Conklin by name, was the only man
in the party who could not swim. He managed with the aid of a piece of wreckage
to reach the Louisiana shore unobserved by the enemy and rejoined his company two
days later.
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| John Hack (left) in later life with Joseph Hack Smith (Grundy County Library) |
"When
all had been rescued and assembled in the moonlight under guard of Confederate
bayonets, the roll was called, and just sixteen, less than half our original
number, were found to have survived. Some of the scalded men were piteous
sights to behold, the flesh hanging in shreds from their faces and bodies as
they ran about in excruciating agony, praying that something be done to relieve
their sufferings. These with the wounded were speedily sent to a hospital,
where some of them died the next day.
"It is
not often, even in a soldier's life, that one is compelled to face death in so
many forms as beset our little party on that memorable night, shot and shell,
fire, water, and a boiler explosion, with its attendant horrors. Our captors
treated us with marked consideration, affording every courtesy consistent with
the rules of war, and we were the recipients of many attentions from soldiers
and citizens who seemed to marvel at the temerity of our undertaking. We were
held prisoners in Vicksburg for two days, when General Grant having crossed the
river, and defeated the enemy near Grand Gulf, Mississippi began to threaten
the city from the rear. We were then paroled, and hurriedly forwarded to
Richmond, Va. where after an eventful journey, through the Confederacy we duly
arrived and were assigned quarters in that famous Confederate hostelry, Libby
Prison. Here we remained about six weeks, before we were exchanged, and we were
only able to rejoin the regiment in the trenches before Vicksburg on the
evening before the surrender, just in time to be in at the death.
"Language
fails to describe my feelings when with a few companions I entered the city the
next morning, July 4th, immediately after the surrender under circumstances in
such marked contrast with my forced advent of a few weeks before. Now, no
hostile demonstrations of any kind greeted us. The great guns were still, the
hostile flags were furled, and Old Glory floated proudly from the public
buildings, while our late foes were quietly resting in their camps awaiting the
pleasure of the victors."
Hack told his family he kept under the floating bale until his capture, using a straw to breathe.
The 1907 citation for Hack reads: “The
President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes
pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Private John Hack, United States
Army, for extraordinary heroism on 3 May 1863, while serving with Company B,
47th Ohio Infantry, in action at Vicksburg, Mississippi. Private Hack was one
of a party which volunteered and attempted to run the enemy's batteries with a
steam tug and two barges loaded with subsistence stores.”According to his obituary in the Trenton Republican-Times, Hack later fought at Missionary Ridge. Hack continued service until Aug. 20, 1864, in Atlanta, when he was discharged for completing his time of service.
According to Tony Ralston, commander of VFW Post
919, Hack worked for the Rock Island and Pacific Railroad as a machinist. Hack came to Trenton from Vincennes, Ind., in about 1890. He served about 15 years as justice of the peace. He was a member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic veterans group and was known as an honorary major. In November 1921, Hack traveled to Washington, D.C., for the dedication of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Hack had three children and died on March
29, 1933, at age 90. A large crowd attended his funeral and songs included "Will the Circle Be Unbroken." His flag-draped casket was carried by caisson to the cemetery. The American Legion conducted services, according to his obituary, which was provided to the Picket by Doris Baker of the Grundy County Jewett Norris Library.
He has two
markers at Maple Grove Cemetery; the Medal of Honor stone was installed nearly
45 years ago, officials said. (Photo, courtesy of Kent Kooi, Findagrave.com)
Sunday’s ceremony in the city of 5,500 about 90 miles northeast of Kansas City will
include a color guard, biography, wreath-laying, a reading of the Medal of Honor citation, rifle salute and the playing of Taps. March 25 -- one day before the event -- is the annual National Medal of Honor Day across the United States.
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| Shadow box with items honoring Freeman Davis (Courtesy of Kevin Miller) |
Miller, with the SUVCW, says camps across the state try to recognize a Medal of Honor recipient each year. In 2021, a ceremony was held to recall Sgt. Freeman Davis of Butler. At Missionary Ridge in November 1863, "This soldier, while his regiment was falling back, seeing the two color bearers shot down, under a severe fire and at imminent peril recovered both the flags and saved them from capture."Miller made a shadow box of related material for the museum in Bates County. The box includes an SUVCW medal and challenge coins and shell casings
from the rifle salute.
